Polar bear attacks and injures skier in Nunavut national park
Skier receiving treatment at health centre in Pangnirtung after incident on Thursday
A skier has been rescued from Auyuittuq National Park near Pangnirtung, Nunavut, after being injured in a polar bear attack early Thursday morning.
Parks Canada says the incident happened near Summit Lake.
Four other visitors helped get the skier to an emergency shelter and contacted Parks Canada.
A helicopter couldn’t safely land in the area, so the group had to be evacuated by snowmobile.
The injured skier is being treated at Pangnirtung’s health centre. There is no word on their condition.
Parks Canada says all visitors to Auyuittuq National Park receive a mandatory orientation about safety in an Arctic environment.
Visitors can carry bear deterrent kits, it says.
No other details about the incident have been released.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: ‘It bit me on my neck and I blacked out’: Man recalls last week’s polar bear attack in Nunavut, Canada, CBC News
Norway: Could drones help prevent polar bear attacks on the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard?, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Poachers suspected behind dwindling wolf numbers in Sweden, Radio Sweden
United States: After deadly bear attack, hikers in Anchorage, Alaska weigh risks, Alaska Public Media
