鳥吉英伸 Dr. Hidenobu Toriyoshi, Ph.D, DVM【獣医師】熊に遭遇した際の対処法の誤りで死亡。福岡大ワンダーフォーゲル部羆襲撃の教訓 鳥吉英伸 Dr. Hidenobu Toriyoshi, Ph.D, DVM
鳥吉英伸 Dr. Hidenobu Toriyoshi, Ph.D, DVM
Fukuoka University Wander Vogel Club Bear Attack Incident.
"Oh, there's a bear. Awesome, let's throw a rock at it." Provoked by the university students, the bear ended up killing three out of the five. It left claw marks that gouged their abdomens. No matter how much they ran, the bear kept chasing them. Over three days, there were six horrific attacks.
In July 1970, three students from the Fukuoka University Wander Vogel Club were killed by a brown bear in the Hidaka Mountains. The incident unfolded as follows:
On July 25, five students were setting up their tent when a brown bear appeared. The students retrieved their backpacks from the bear that was rummaging through their food, but the bear continued to attack them multiple times afterward. On the morning of the 26th, while they were packing up to leave, the bear appeared again, and the students struggled with the bear over the tent. Subsequently, two students went down the mountain to seek help, rejoining the remaining three later. However, in the evening, the bear attacked again, killing one student. The remaining three bivouacked on a rocky area.
On the morning of the 27th, the bear appeared again in the fog, and the leader, A, was chased and killed. The other two escaped to Hachinosawa and were safely rescued. C, who spent the night alone, survived until the afternoon of the 27th but was later attacked by the bear.
The incident was analyzed to have been caused by the students taking back food that the bear had once obtained, making the bear aggressive. Additionally, it was emphasized that it is important for multiple people to stick together. After the incident, the bear was shot and killed.
The lessons to be learned from this incident highlight the importance of proper bear encounter procedures. If you encounter a brown bear, it is essential to stay calm, back away slowly, and never turn your back and run. Also, trying to retrieve a backpack from a bear is suicidal and should be avoided.
The mistakes made in handling the bear encounter are as follows:
By retrieving the belongings that the bear rummaged through, the bear saw them as enemies. Brown bears are very tenacious, and it is extremely dangerous to try to take back something they have obtained.
Continuing the climb out of curiosity instead of descending immediately upon encountering the bear was also problematic. By not descending, they missed the opportunity to avoid danger.
Turning their back to the bear while fleeing stimulated the bear's chasing instinct. It is extremely dangerous to turn your back.
They had not reviewed proper bear encounter procedures beforehand. Being climbers from Kyushu, they were not familiar with brown bears, which prevented them from responding appropriately.
They misunderstood that the bear's actions would be limited by time or bad weather. They did not anticipate that the bear would be active even in thick fog, which led to their predicament.
This incident emphasized the importance of correct understanding and procedures for dealing with brown bears.