ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A hunter in Alaska was hospitalized after he was attacked and shot by a brown bear while trying to fend it off, authorities said Monday.
The bear attack occurred Saturday on the Kenai Peninsula, southwest of Anchorage, The Alaska State Troopers said.
The hunter, a 32-year-old man, was seriously injured in both the assault and the shooting. He and a hunting companion opened fire, and he was shot in the leg. It was not immediately clear who fired the shot that struck him, trooper spokesman Tim DeSpain said in an email.
The bear has been killed.
DeSpain said the assault occurred in a remote area off the Resurrection Pass trail. The circumstances leading up to it are not known. The injured hunter, whose identity was not immediately released, was flown by helicopter to an Anchorage hospital.
