New Details Emerge In Fatal Bear Attack On JBER Soldier; Another Injured (Updated)
Another soldier was injured in the still somewhat murky details surrounding a fatal bear attack on a training Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson soldier. JBER officials released the following short statement on Wednesday night:
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – A U.S. Army Alaska Soldier died of injuries sustained in bear attack today in a training area west of the Anchorage Regional Landfill.
The Soldier was part of a small group training in Training Area 412. The name of the Soldier is being withheld pending next-of-kin notification.
The 673d Security Forces Squadron initially responded to the incident. Alaska Wildlife Troopers are currently searching for the bear in TA 412, which is closed to the public for all recreation activity.
More information about the incident will be announced as it becomes available.
For information about bear safety and the status of TAs for recreation, please consult JBER iSportsman, https://jber.isportsman.net.
The Anchorage Daily News reported late Wednesday night that another soldier was injured in the attack, which involved a bear and her cubs. Here’s the ADN:
Military and wildlife officials continue to investigate the fatal bear mauling this week that killed one soldier and injured another in a remote training area on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage.
It’s not clear what kind of bear attacked the U.S. Army Alaska soldiers Tuesday afternoon, but Capt. Derek DeGraaf, with the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, said it was a sow with one or two cubs.
“There were three people in the area, two were close to the den. One of those people was injured, the other was killed,” DeGraaf said Wednesday.
The second soldier’s injuries were not life-threatening, DeGraaf said.