OT / Black Bear Attack

[saxman]

Black bear attacks and kills grandmother, 70, on fishing trip
KATE HAMMER
From Monday's Globe and Mail

The husband of a 70-year-old grandmother who was killed by a bear in northern Quebec fearlessly chased the wild animal off his wife's battered body, according to family members.

Conservation experts set traps after Friday evening's attack, but according to police, as of last night, the bear was still at large in the wilds of northern Quebec.

Cecile Lavoie and Alexandre Lavoie, 73, were in remote country nearly 600 kilometres northwest of Ottawa, where the retirees often spent the weekend fishing or hunting deer.

According to her daughter, Ms. Lavoie felt at home in the woods and on the banks of the Theo River, where the bear attacked.

As she scouted a fishing hole for walleye, Ms. Lavoie became separated from her husband. Barely 10 minutes later, Mr. Lavoie felt something was amiss and went searching for his wife of 51 years. Metres away he came upon the nightmarish scene of her body being dragged into the forest by a bear.

Mr. Lavoie chased the predator for nearly 200 metres and managed very briefly to scare it away from his wife. He tried but was unable to carry her limp and bleeding body back through the dense spring foliage.

He left her and went for help. When he arrived with police, the bear had returned and was combative.

"The bear was still around and the bear was aggressive," said Sergeant Gregory Gomez del Prado, a spokesman for the Quebec provincial police. "It was dark so it was hard to find the woman's body."

The bear was so aggressive, police were forced to delay attempts to retrieve Ms. Lavoie's remains until early Saturday morning, after it retreated into the deep woods north of the small community of La Sarre.

Yesterday Ms. Lavoie's family gathered at her Beaucanton home. Mr. Lavoie, the retired owner of a logging machinery business his wife helped him build, is still in shock according to his daughter, Christine Lavoie.

"She was an angel," Christine said yesterday in a telephone interview. "Fishing and hunting were her favourite activities, she was in her paradise."

According to the Quebec Ministry of Natural Resources and Fauna website, black bears are the species most commonly found in Quebec. This species rarely attacks humans and only four people have been killed by black bears in that province over the past 25 years.

In 1991, a black bear killed a Toronto couple in Algonquin Park, baffling wildlife experts as it left the campers' food stores untouched.

In 2001, a high-school student was attacked and partly eaten by a black bear 25 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife.

In 2007, a Calgary woman, who was cycling on a trail near a British Columbia resort, was stalked and killed by a black bear.

Attacks sometimes occur in the spring when bears awake from hibernation and are hungry. According to wildlife experts, a long winter and large amounts of snow meant this year's hibernation season stretched a few weeks longer than usual.

In the event that one is approached by a black bear, the ministry website recommends moving slowly and avoiding eye contact in order to evade being identified as prey by the bear. Climbing a tree can be an effective way to escape attack.

According to her family, the attack on Ms. Lavoie happened so quickly she didn't even have time to scream, let alone reach for the bear spray she carried with her. As accomplished hunters and campers who were born and raised in northern Canada, the Lavoies were well-versed in the recommended tools for avoiding and dealing with bear attacks.

It remains unclear why the bear attacked Ms. Lavoie.

In addition to her husband, she leaves behind five children and 11 grandchildren.

[beretta96D]

tragic story, but what baffles me, is that they thought the bear too aggressive, and returned the following day to retrieve her !!!!

They wanted to capture the bear anyways, shoot it before it attacks someone else! Sure sounds like they care for animals more than other humans dead or alive!

[saxman]

Yes sir,that would be one dead bear.

[Boo]

See guys! Those things like to eat people! There's a reason I won't hunt them!

[sumner4991]

You guys may have seen the story here in Marietta, GA. There was a black bear at the doors of the local L.A. Fitness Center just 10 miles from my house. After staring into the fitness center for a few seconds(seemed like an hour for the folks inside), it ran off. Someone got some footage with their video via cell phone. City life! They never caught that one either. At least it hasn't killed anyone . . .yet.

[mikej]

thats a terrible story, tell me again why it was a good idea to cancel the spring bear hunt ?

[Boo]

thats a terrible story, tell me again why it was a good idea to cancel the spring bear hunt ?

Apparently it is a good idea because a donor to the provincial government sympathizes with the black bear. It's disgusting really. It seems that the provincial government puts cash ahead of lives. Where I hunt in Northern Alberta blackies are considered vermin!

[sumner4991]

deleted . . .

[dick195252]

Wild animals are just that WILD and are unpredictable, We must Respect Them and be alert when we enter there domain, This story is very Sad

[bait pile willie]

there is a spring hunt in Quebec.

[Cossack]

When good, honorable people can't carry guns to protect themselves bears (and dishonorable people) will treat them as prey. Truly sad event, on many levels. Police leave her body because the bear was combative?!! Don't they carry either?!! Totally inexcusable.

[Grizzly Adam]

Bears are part of my life. I live next to Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, which is a designated bear sanctuary and one of the wildest places in the Eastern US. When out of the house, I might encounter a bear at any time, and anywhere ... of any sex, age or size. Bears up to 710 pounds have been killed within a mile of where I'm sitting, and three over 500 have been killed by hunters using my land.

In the past two weeks, I have "run off" bears from around my yard no less than five times ... a frequent task before, during and after wheat harvest. Corn will soon be coming into milk stage, so bears will be thick until fall. One bear that I "discouraged" three weeks ago happened to be a 450 lb. + boar that was making territorial rubs and bites and scratches in my yard and on my buildings ... I caught him in the act. A grumpy territorial male with an attitude in your yard is no joke, friends.

I can tell you that bears are as smart as the smartest dogs.
I can tell you that bears have differing personalities.
I can tell you that bears cannot be trusted.
I can tell you that bears can be real trouble.

The only real way to know bears is to live in close proximity to them. Education won't teach you as much; neither will hunting or camping or hiking or any other activity. There is no instruction in "Bearology" like having them around 24/7/365 ... and I've learned a lot.

Anyone who considers black bears harmless or thinks they should not be respected as potentially dangerous is foolish and ignorant. It is always prudent to consider a black bear a very real threat. This is especially so in areas where they are not aggressively or often hunted.

I used to take a "reactive" stance to discouraging bears in the vicinity of our home, but lately I've become more "proactive" in my treatment of bears that are frequently seen. I can tell you by sad experience that the cute cub or junior bear that lays around 200 yards from your house eating wheat or stripping corn can become a very belligerant boar who thinks he owns your yard and buildings.

People will think what they want about bears, and there are lots of corny ideas about them being shy and harmless, but this 'ol boy can tell you that it just ain't so. Awareness, caution, active discouragement and proper protection when out and about are the order of the day.

Unless you prefer to learn the hard way.

[Boo]

I've heard from some people that are taking steps to protect themselves. The result being flies and fly larvae.

[Normous]

I've heard from some people that are taking steps to protect themselves. The result being flies and fly larvae.

You mean the three S's...Shoot,shovel,silence?

[Boo]

So I'm told! Sometimes a little slow release lead pill.
I don't blame them, if it's me or it, it's toast!