A grizzly bear attacked a disabled U.S. Army combat veteran on Sunday in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park as he hiked up Signal Mountain to photograph a great grey owl before leaving the area with his wife.
The New York Post reported that thirty-five-year-old Shayne Patrick Burke recalled his intense struggle to survive after the bear’s assault.
In an Instagram post, Burke described the encounter as “the most violent thing I have ever experienced,” despite having endured being shot at, mortared, and exposed to IED explosions during his military service.
An image captured the veteran immediately after the attack.
https://twitter.com/nypost/status/1794274301266288952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Before walking into the wilderness by himself, Burke told his wife he would meet up with her in the parking lot in an hour. On his way back to her, the veteran took precautions by making noise to avoid encountering a bear.
However, as he spotted a brown bear cub running up a nearby hill, he realized it was only a matter of time before the mother bear made her presence known. And indeed, she soon appeared and charged at Burke when she spotted him.
“I unholstered my bear spray and saw the mother bear charging. I stood my ground, shouted and attempted to deploy the bear spray but as I did she already closed the gap,” he said, according to Fox News.
When the bear approached him, Burke turned away from her, lay face-down on the ground, and interlocked his hands over his neck to protect his carotid arteries.
As he lay there, the bear bit him, slashed at his shoulder, stepped on his back, bit his leg, then picked him up and slammed him on the ground repeatedly.
Burke believes she tried to deliver a “kill bite” to his neck when he screamed. Despite this, Burke managed to maintain his grip on a can of bear spray as the bear’s jaws clamped down on it.
The can exploded, causing the bear to flee towards her cubs. Burke then texted his wife and applied makeshift tourniquets to his legs before calling 911.
He struggled to be located by helicopter crews but recorded a video while waiting for help, expressing love for those close to him in case the worst occurred.
Ultimately, rescue crews found him and transported him to a local hospital for surgery. He is currently in recovery.
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department highlighted the differing characteristics of black bears and grizzly bears and advised visitors to be aware of these distinctions.
Grizzly bears are identified by their prominent shoulder hump, short round ears, dished facial profile, and long straight claws that are three to four inches long.
On the other hand, black bears lack a shoulder hump and have tall pointed ears, a straight facial profile, and short curved claws that are one to two inches long.
Following confirmation of the attack by officials, Burke requested that park rangers refrain from euthanizing the bear because he understood she was only defending her cub.
Park officials have since stated that the bear will not be put down according to Fox reports.
“What happened up on Signal Mountain was a case of wrong place wrong time,” Burke said.
1 Comment
Very lucky fella. Looks like he had a guardian angel on his shoulder. Only question I have is why was he out in Grizzly Country w/o a BFG?