Two Separate Bear Attacks Occur in One Day in Northeastern Japan; 3 Suffer Non Life-Threatening Injuries

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:22 JST, May 19, 2024

Two separate bear attacks occurred in Akita Prefecture on Saturday. Two police officers were attacked in a mountain forest in the city of Kazuno, and a man was attacked in a rice paddy field in the town of Mitane. All three victims suffered non life-threatening injuries.

Two police officers were attacked by a bear at around 1 p.m. on Saturday, while searching a mountain forest in Towadaoyu in the city of Kazuno for two missing people. The officers were reportedly able to speak while being transported to the hospital. According to a police announcement, one officer, 25, suffered injuries to his face and both shoulders, while the other officer, 45, suffered injuries to both arms and his chest.

Since Wednesday, a man and a woman who went separately into the mountain forest to gather bamboo shoots have been missing, and a search party of nine police and firefighting personnel had been looking for the pair on Saturday. The police officers were attacked by the bear immediately after discovering a collapsed man in the forest, who appears to be the missing man. After the policemen were attacked by the bear, the search has been suspended and the city of Kazuno is restricting entry to the forest for the time being.

At 5:20 p.m. on the same day, a 61-year-old farmer was attacked by a bear that was approximately 1-meter-long while in a rice paddy field in Moritake in the town of Mitane. The man was bit on his right leg and was reportedly conscious while being transported to the hospital.