Bear attack in Pinetop

[Airbusdriver]

A Gilbert woman was attacked by a black bear late Tuesday evening while walking her dog in Pinetop, the Arizona Game and Fish Department reports.

 

A passing motorist eventually scared the bear away.

 

The woman was flown to a Phoenix area hospital, where she was undergoing surgery, officials said. Pinetop is roughly 200 miles northeast of central Phoenix.

 

The attack occurred about 60 yards from the dumpster where the adult black bear was scavenging, and the bear reportedly returned several times to attack the victim.

 

"This was an especially aggressive, predatory attack that reminds us that wildlife can be unpredictable," said Larry Voyles, director of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

 

Officials report dogs were quickly able to find the bear within a couple hundred yards of the scene, and it was dispatched immediately.

 

There have been only six documented cases of bear attacks in Arizona since the Game and Fish department started keeping records in 1990.

 

Officials do not believe this attack is related to the wildfires, nor do they believe the bear was diseased.

 

http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/2011/06/29/20110629gilbert-woman-bear-attack-abrk29-ON.html

[biglakejake]

a buddy and i were walking the bank at fool hollow lake thowing POP-Rs for bass while the attack was happening 15 miles south. i bumped out a bear at one point and was glad i had a 'lil beretta .32 CCW in my pocket. methinks next night fishing trip i'll be accompanied by mr. .44 Special.

 

i can just see the witnesses trying to herd that boar outa there with thier cars but the bear wern't skeered much.

lee

[.270]

i hate gittin' bear bit. worse thing about it is ya hafta bite em back and they taste like h e l l and ya git a big mouth fulla fur. hopefully she recovers and ain't all tore up and hopefully he wasn't rabid. the photo looked like a fair sized bear too. Lark.

[afmalinois]

i knew lark was going to have some wisdom on this one

[missedagain]

I hope the lady turns out okay, I would have thought that someone who walks their dog from Gilbert to Pinetop could outrun a bear and where was the dog when this was happening, must have been a shih tzu

[MattMan]

They landed the medi vac around 12:30 at night... thought they were gonna land on our roof. Figured either someone got bit or shot.

 

I gotta wonder what a 61 year old lady was doing walking around at midnight in the dark with a dog. It was a 250-300 lb boar, and she ain't in good shape. When they figure they can tell if they got the right one by the necropsy, that means there was enough of her gone that they know they can find her missing parts in the right bear's belly.

 

We had a bear around here a day or two before she got bit, so he's been in the neighborhood a while... my dumba** neighbor is a retired sheriff from Tucson and always said there was nothing to worry about with black bears, they never hurt anybody and just to walk around them...

 

If a bear gets on you at night, he's gonna eat till something stops him or he's tired of eating... and they just hold you down and eat, they don't even have the common courtesy to kill you first like a lion.

[.270]

last time i got in a fight with a bear the stinkin' jerks tested me for rabies to see if i gave it to the bear! he bit me first! i hope this lady gets well. i see they finished their tests on the bear, but don't have any conclusions yet. it's wierd he came back 3 times. most of the time a black bear will get outta dodge if you just holler and clap your hands. where did it say she was walking at midnight? i didn't see that part. Lark

[Sam]

This is tragic - both for the woman and the bear. I have spent many a summer up in Pinetop and have never had the desire to walk my dog at 11:45pm. Not the best time for a walk. Yes the bear was aggressive, typically they run, unless they are very hungry, thirsty or startled in the middle of the night. Too bad he couldn't have been relocated - even though that often doesn't work.

 

A Gilbert woman was attacked by a black bear late Tuesday evening while walking her dog in Pinetop, the Arizona Game and Fish Department reports.

 

A passing motorist eventually scared the bear away.

 

The woman was flown to a Phoenix area hospital, where she was undergoing surgery, officials said. Pinetop is roughly 200 miles northeast of central Phoenix.

 

The attack occurred about 60 yards from the dumpster where the adult black bear was scavenging, and the bear reportedly returned several times to attack the victim.

 

"This was an especially aggressive, predatory attack that reminds us that wildlife can be unpredictable," said Larry Voyles, director of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

 

Officials report dogs were quickly able to find the bear within a couple hundred yards of the scene, and it was dispatched immediately.

 

There have been only six documented cases of bear attacks in Arizona since the Game and Fish department started keeping records in 1990.

 

Officials do not believe this attack is related to the wildfires, nor do they believe the bear was diseased.

 

http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/2011/06/29/20110629gilbert-woman-bear-attack-abrk29-ON.html

[BeardownAZ]

This is tragic - both for the woman and the bear. I have spent many a summer up in Pinetop and have never had the desire to walk my dog at 11:45pm. Not the best time for a walk. Yes the bear was aggressive, typically they run, unless they are very hungry, thirsty or startled in the middle of the night. Too bad he couldn't have been relocated - even though that often doesn't work.

 

A Gilbert woman was attacked by a black bear late Tuesday evening while walking her dog in Pinetop, the Arizona Game and Fish Department reports.

 

A passing motorist eventually scared the bear away.

 

The woman was flown to a Phoenix area hospital, where she was undergoing surgery, officials said. Pinetop is roughly 200 miles northeast of central Phoenix.

 

The attack occurred about 60 yards from the dumpster where the adult black bear was scavenging, and the bear reportedly returned several times to attack the victim.

 

"This was an especially aggressive, predatory attack that reminds us that wildlife can be unpredictable," said Larry Voyles, director of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

 

Officials report dogs were quickly able to find the bear within a couple hundred yards of the scene, and it was dispatched immediately.

 

There have been only six documented cases of bear attacks in Arizona since the Game and Fish department started keeping records in 1990.

 

Officials do not believe this attack is related to the wildfires, nor do they believe the bear was diseased.

 

http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/2011/06/29/20110629gilbert-woman-bear-attack-abrk29-ON.html

 

He was relocated, to the county landfill that is! Besides he showed no obvious fear of people even after chased by a car and still came back for more. They did exactly as they should of.

[.270]

most of the time it pisses me off when they kill problem bears. like the one last summer over by safford that was just passing through. but this one needed shot. if they woulda just moved him or whatever, he woulda done it again. Lark.

[DesertBull]

Bear was dumpster diving. If you go down to McDowell and 35th ave and startle a dumpster diver at midnight, you gonna get mauled there too. Just sayin.

[MattMan]

where did it say she was walking at midnight? i didn't see that part. Lark

 

I live here so they didn't have to tell me when the chopper landed...

 

Plenty of bears in the woods, and dumpster divers are habitual and a problem waitin' to happen... they've learned bad habits that can't be broken. Kill 'em and reduce the harvest objective for the year if it's a sow. Done deal.

 

Relocation is a joke. A bad one. AZGFD has kinda backed off from that theory since the Mt. Lemon attack a few years ago. He was a problem bear they'd relocated a time or two. Pretty sure they lost their shorts over that one in court. Likely had a written policy they didn't follow. Also know first hand of one they relocated THREE times from Pinetop to Ruidoso. Same bear. THREE times.

 

Clap your hands and yell during the daytime and you're probably good to go... night, startled, sleeping in a tent with the remnants of a ribeye on your breath, likely a different story.

[DesertBull]

PINETOP, Ariz. - Tossed around like a rag doll -- that's what one witness said after a woman from Gilbert is nearly mauled to death by an adult black bear while walking her dog in Pinetop.

 

The attack happened around 11:40 p.m. Tuesday near the Pinetop Country Club and Sports Village condos, a developed area in northeastern Arizona.

 

The bear was rummaging for food in a dumpster when he suddenly made a beeline across the parking lot for 60-year-old Lana Hollingsworth.

 

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/offbeat/woman-injured-after-bear-attacks-her-06292011

[cdenton]

The AZGF used to have a three strike your out policy. They would ear tag them relocate them and if they came back the third time they would dispose of them. Alot of those bears once they lose that fear of humans it's a bad deal. I'm glad they are using common sense now on alot of the situations. Alot of young males get kicked out of territories and are just traveling thru to find a home. But then theres a bear like this that's aggressive and has no fear of humans and doesn't need to be given any chances cause he will do it again.

[Outdoor Writer]

DNA tests of bear confirm involvement in attack on woman

 

Results of DNA testing on an adult male black bear have confirmed that the animal is the one that attacked a woman in Pinetop on Tuesday.

 

The Arizona Game and Fish Department conducted a forensic necropsy of the bear on Wednesday, but the procedure did not yield any immediately identifiable human material. However, DNA samples taken from the bear during the necropsy matched bear DNA found on the victim’s clothing.

 

The analysis was done by the nationally-recognized Wyoming Game and Fish Wildlife Forensic and Fish Health Laboratory.

 

“Confirmation from the DNA tests gives us complete confidence that we removed the right bear in the interest of public safety. Hopefully, correct identification will provide closure for the victim and her family,” said Larry Voyles, Arizona Game and Fish Department director. “We especially thank the Wyoming Game and Fish Department for dropping their other priorities to immediately process this case. Their responsiveness was key to getting the results so quickly.”

 

A rabies test carried out by the Arizona Department of Health Services came back negative.

 

Game and Fish’s forensic necropsy did reveal a significant amount of kitchen garbage in the bear’s digestive tract, suggesting that the animal had been scavenging for food waste in trash cans and dumpsters.

 

The Gilbert woman was attacked by the bear while walking her dog in Pinetop late Tuesday evening. The attack occurred near Sports Village Loop approximately 60 yards from a dumpster where the bear had been scavenging.

 

The woman was flown to the Phoenix area for medical treatment and continues to be hospitalized.

 

Within a few hours, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services personnel arrived and used dogs to track the bear from the scene of the attack. The dogs quickly encountered a bear within a couple hundred yards of the site and treed it after a short pursuit. It was immediately destroyed.

 

“Bears are particularly active at this time of year. We don’t believe this attack is related to wildfires in northeastern Arizona, but it could be related to continued drought conditions. Bears are easily drawn to human food sources, like dumpsters, trash cans and campsites especially during times of drought. Game and Fish strongly reminds residents living in bear country to be aware of bears in their area and to properly dispose of all food sources in secure containers,” said Voyles.

 

Bear attacks on humans are rare with only seven cases documented (including the one this week in Pinetop) in Arizona since 1990, which is as far back as the department’s database tracks.

 

Camping season is here; avoid attracting wildlife

 

Despite this year’s wildfires, closures and restrictions, prime camping season is still in full swing in many parts of the high country, and the Arizona Game and Fish Department reminds people heading to the great outdoors to keep a clean campsite to help avoid human-wildlife conflicts.

 

Primarily, bear activity is up this time of year, as yearling bears leave their mothers and begin roaming more in search of food sources and to establish their own territories. Bears have a keen sense of smell and can be drawn to food in campgrounds. Food is the root cause of many human-wildlife conflicts.

 

Wildlife officials say it is prudent for all outdoor recreationists to take the following precautions to minimize potential conflicts with bears and other wildlife:

 

• 
   
  
• Never intentionally feed wildlife.
  
• Secure all garbage.
  
• Keep a clean camp.
  
• Do not cook in your tent or sleeping area.
  
• Store all food, toiletries and other scented items well away from sleeping areas.
  
• Wash up, change clothing, and remove all scented articles before retiring to your sleeping area.
  
• Walk or jog in groups. Pay attention to your surroundings when hiking, jogging or bicycling.
  
• Supervise your children and keep them in sight.
  
• Keep your pets on a leash—don’t allow them to roam free. Or better yet, leave them at home if you can. Pets can easily get into conflicts with a wide range of wildlife.
  
• Don’t approach wildlife – enjoy it from a distance.
  

 

If you are confronted by a bear or other large mammal such as a mountain lion, don’t run, but stay calm, continue facing it, and slowly back away. Try to make yourself look as big and imposing as possible; put young children on your shoulders. Speak or yell and let it know you are human. Make loud noises by clanging pans, using air horns, or whatever is available.

 

If you encounter a bear or other large mammal in a developed campground, notify the campground host. If you have a problem with a scavenging bear in the forest, notify the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

 

For more information, visit www.azgfd.gov/urbanwildlife.