Conservation officers in British Columbia say a grizzly bear attack near West Creston, B.C., that left a man with “significant” injuries this weekend was “defensive in nature.”
The attack happened around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday as a couple was riding e-bikes along the Kootenay River.
According to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service, the woman heard her husband scream before she was charged by a bear.
She used bear spray to deter it, then used the spray again to ward off a second bear that was attacking her husband.
“I admire this couple for being as prepared as they were I think they saved their own lives and they may have saved the lives of bears,” Creston Mayor Arnold DeBoon told Global News.
On Monday, the service said it was “confident” the couple had startled the bears on a corner of the trail shrouded by thick brush.
“No evidence was found to suggest either bear had been stalking or hunting the couple,” the Conservation Officer Service said.
“There were no reports of bear activity or aggressive bear behaviour in the area prior to the Saturday afternoon attack.”
Lana Cianiello with the International Union for Conservation of Nature said new technology is making that type of surprise encounter more likely.
“One thing we know with e-bikes is that they can be very silent, and they travel at very high speed,s and those two things go against everything we tell you about when you’re out hiking and being out in bear country,” she said.
“Bears are usually really good at coexisting with us if they have advanced warning.”
To reduce the risk, she recommends people make loud noises, stay alert and carry bear spray when in grizzly territory.
The victim has since undergone surgery and is expected to recover, the service said.
Because of the defensive nature of the attack, officials do not intend to try and capture or kill the grizzlies.
Trails in the area remained closed on Monday as a precautionary measure.