The B.C. Conservation Officer Service (COS) said the four grizzly bears that have been captured in the days following an attack in Bella Coola were not involved in the attack.<\/p>\n
The attack took place Nov. 20 and left four people seriously injured — one adult and three children. The search for bears involved in the attack has been ongoing ever since.<\/p>\n
Forensic evidence has ruled out the four grizzlies that have so far been captured by conservation officers, the COS said in a social media statement Friday evening, Nov. 28.<\/p>\n
“The BCCOS received results today from a forensics lab, which analyzed evidence from the attack, including animal DNA. None of the captured bears were linked to the attack,” the COS said.<\/p>\n
The bears will be relocated within their home range but far from the Bella Coola community in the coming days, with help from wildlife biologists and the provincial wildlife veterinarian.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the search for any bears involved in the attack goes on.<\/p>\n
“The BCCOS continues to support the Nuxalk Nation as the search for any bears involved and investigation continues,” the COS said.<\/p>\n
The victims in the attack were among a group of students and teachers who had stopped along a trail near a river in the 4 Mile area when the attack took place. In all, 11 people were injured.<\/p>\n
The COS said it had captured the two most recent grizzlies on Thursday, Nov. 27. The first two bears were captured Monday, Nov. 24.<\/p>\n
Residents are asked to avoid the 4 Mile area, stay indoors, and refrain from searching for any bears themselves.<\/p>\n
“Conservation Officers will continue to monitor bear activity in the Bella Coola area and respond as necessary to ensure public safety.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
COS says the bears will be relocated as the search for the bears involved continues <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":113,"featured_media":160959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-160958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-regional-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n