Bellevue Council Member OK after Bear Attack
Posted on 23 September 2010
John Chelminiak, a Bellevue city councilman, was mauled by a bear over the weekend, but is now stable and alert. Doctors at the Harborview Hospital are now closely monitoring him to keep his wounds from becoming infected.
Now rest easy…this attack did not happen in Bellevue, but over at Lake Wenatchee.
Chelminiak had gone out to walk his dogs at about 8:30 p.m. near his cabin on Lake Wenatchee. Fifteen minutes later, his wife and 11-year-old daughter heard the councilman yell, “Bear! Bear!”
Chelminiak’s wife took immediate action and scared the bear off, but could still see it pacing back and forth while she tried to help her husband.
Chelminiak was taken to a Wenatchee hospital, then airlifted to Harborview Medical Center.
Wildlife officials tracked down the black bear and euthanized it. They said it was a female that seemed unhealthy, which could be why it attacked. Black bears are not usually aggressive
For more on the story click here.
Here are a few tips regarding bears:
Bears don’t like surprises! Avoid startling a bear. Where sight distance is limited or flowing water is muffling sounds, make noise by talking, singing, shouting, or clapping your hands. Do not make shrill or high pitch noises as these may attract bears. Some hikers use bells for noise.
Do not come between a bear and her cubs! Bears are extremely protective of their offspring.
Always stay alert to your surroundings. Be especially wary in places where there is food favored by bears; for example, berries or carcasses of large animals. If you smell a dead animal, do not investigate! Leave the area and inform a ranger.
Avoid thick brush and be watchful when traveling off trail. If you can’t avoid travelling through brush, try to walk with the wind at your back so your scent will warn bears of your presense. Bears rest and sleep in day beds, such as a depression next to a log, under the roots of a fallen tree, or in dense brush, or out in a grassy meadow.
It is best to not hike alone. A bear is less likely to approach groups of people.
Be especially alert if hiking around dawn or dusk. Bears can be active at any time of the day or night but are more often encountered at those times, and bears that are trying to avoid people may be more active when fewer people are out.
If you are hiking with children, make sure they stay with you at all times.
If dogs are permitted where you are hiking, keep yours on a leash and under your control. Loose dogs disturb wildlife and may lead a bear back to you.
* Bears, like humans, use trails. Avoid setting up camp close to a trail they might use.