In the Soda Butte campgrounds outside Yellowstone National Park, bear attacks on tent campers in separate campsites in Montana left one person dead and two others injured on Wednesday, 7/28/2010, according to a Reuters report. Officials are still unsure as to what type of bear was involved in the attack and if multiple bears were involved.
Can a similar incident happen here in Tennessee?
Not only can it happen, in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, it already has. Southeastern Outdoors reports that Glenda Ann Bradley was the first fatal victim of a bear attack in the park in May of 2000.
In 2008, an 8 year old boy was injured by a Black bear near Gatlinburg, TN as reported by the National Parks Traveler.
Southeastern Outdoors reports that the National Park is home to approximately 1,800 Black bears which is about 2 bears per square mile. The park has over 10 millions visitors per year and, according to yoursmokies.com, the Black bear is one of the most "sought after residents."
Hikers and campers must follow some basic bear safety guidelines that will help reduce the chance of becoming a victim of a bear attack. The entire list of these guidelines can be found at yoursmokies.com. Rules involving food and the storage of food are the number one preventive measure against bear encounters. Campers should avoid cooking strong smelling food over a campfire with could attract a bear to the campground. Food should be stored inside a vehicle or a hard sided camper NOT in tents. Note that pop-up campers still fall into the category of a tent for this rule.
It is worth noting that the Wednesday attacks in Montana resulted in two tents being destroyed but officials did not find any food in the tent where the man was killed so properly storing food does not eliminate the risk of bear attack.
The number of folks in your party also seems to greatly impact the chance of a bear encounter. The website, yoursmokies.com, writes that "recent studies suggest that the more people in your party the lower the chance of a black bear attack. It seems that the magic statistical number where bear attacks virtually stop is 5. The less people, the greater chance of an attack."
Campers who camp in TN bear country might want to consider getting some Bear Assault Pepper Spray which is now legal to carry, possess, and use in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
Please keep the victims of this week's attack in your thoughts and, if you are planning a trip to the Smoky Mountains, please follow all recommended bear safety guidelines.
Stay safe and let's go camping!
Comments
This is the Philadelphia Examiner - why are you asking about Tennessee? The Delaware Water Gap is GRAND CENTRAL STATION for black bears.
yes, and the "government" has put black bears in Big South Fork where there were NONE. The park is only 11 miles wide at it's widest and the bears are wandering into populated areas causing trouble. WHY do they do this? Answer: a few big game hunters want the residents of these bourdering counties to suffer problems so a "hunting season" can be declared and they can go shoot them. Special interests win over "the people".
Hi, riverhealer. I sure didn't mean to slight Delaware nor intend to imply that the bears around the Smoky Mountains in TN are more of a problem than anywhere else. I am the Nashville Camping Examiner and only wanted to point out similar bear attacks near us and remind our Tennessee campers about bear safety in the park.
I'm from nevada and we have bears here also....scary one u see one
The bears are finally retaliating after hundreds of years of persecution. If people don't want to get attacked they should not go into the home of a bear (i.e. forest). Does a bear enter your suburban home in the city?
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!