British Columbia officials search for a bear and two cubs that attacked a group of school children on Thursday. Photo courtesy of Conservation Officer Service/Facebook
Canadian conservation officials continue their search for three grizzly bears that attacked a group of elementary students injuring four people, including a teacher, last week in rural British Columbia.
Since the Thursday attack in Bella Coola Valley, located about 620 miles north of Vancouver, B.C. conservation officers have been searching the region for the mother grizzly bear and two cubs.
On Sunday, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service has been rotating teams to search for the bears, including during the night.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police air assets with thermal imaging cameras have been deployed to assist, the BCCOS said in a statement, while urging members of the public to not aid in their search efforts.
Additional officers arrived a day prior, and trapping efforts were ongoing.
Residents are being urged to avoid the 4 Miles subdivision of Bella Coola Valley where the attack occurred and to remain indoors.
Any bears captured amid the search will be assessed by wildlife biologists as well as federal veterinarians “to determine next steps,” the BCCOS said.
On Thursday, local authorities were notified of a bear attack involving a school group. Three students and an adult were injured, BCCOS Insp. Kevin Van Damme said in a recorded statement posted on Facebook.
The group had stopped along a trail when the bear, emerging from the woods, attacked. A teacher, armed with pepper spray and a bear banger, successfully repelled the animal, he said.
The four injured were transported to a hospital in Vancouver for further treatment.
The bear may have been previously injured, Van Damme said.
B.C. Premier David Eby thanked the teachers for their “heroism.”
“The conservation officers, I’m assured, are working hard to identify and find the bear, and I know for all of us in the province [this is] just a terrible story and terrible outcome and we wish a quick recovery and the best for everyone who was injured,” he said during a press conference following the attack.
According to the British Columbia Conservation Foundation, grizzly bear attacks in the province are uncommon but occasionally turn fatal.
