WALES, Alaska (AP) — A polar bear has attacked and killed two people in a remote village in western Alaska, according to state troopers.
Alaska State Troopers said they received the report of the attack at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in Wales, on the western tip of the Seward Peninsula, KTUU reported.
“Initial reports indicate that a polar bear had entered the community and had chased multiple residents,” troopers wrote. “The bear fatally attacked an adult female and juvenile male."
The bear was shot and killed by a local resident as it attacked the pair, troopers said.
The names of the the two people killed were not released. Troopers said they were working to notify family members.
Troopers and the state Department of Fish and Game are planning to travel to Wales once weather allows for it, the dispatch said.
Wales is a small, predominantly Inupiaq town of about 150 people, just over 100 miles (161 kilometers) northwest of Nome.
Fatal polar bear attacks have been rare in Alaska's recent history. In 1990, a polar bear killed a man farther north of Wales in the village of Point Lay. Biologists later said the animal showed signs of starvation, the Anchorage Daily News reported.
Alaska scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey in 2019 found changes in sea ice habitat had coincided with evidence that polar bears’ use of land was increasing and that the chances of a polar bear encounter had increased.
-
Netanyahu looks to boost US support in speech to Congress, but faces protests
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak before Congress in hopes of bolstering U.S. support in its war with Hamas. But some Democratic lawmakers are boycotting his appearance.Michigan, Ohio State dominate Big Ten's top preseason honors
Defending national champion Michigan and 2023 East Division runner-up Ohio State dominated the Big Ten preseason, claiming a total of seven of the 12 top positional honorsSalt Lake City will officially host 2034 Winter Olympics
Salt Lake City has officially been named the host city for the 2034 Winter Olympics. The French Alps were also named tentative host of the 2030 Winter Games, though that is conditional.Harris will address a historically Black sorority in Indianapolis on Wednesday
Just three days after launching her bid for the White House, Harris will address the biennial gathering of the historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta in Indianapolis.