Guy Miner
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- Apr 6, 2006
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Boy killed by bear
The 11-year-old was pulled from his tent
By Sara Israelsen
Deseret Morning News
AMERICAN FORK CANYON — A black bear that fatally mauled an 11-year-old boy in American Fork Canyon might not have been motivated by leftover camp food, officials said Monday.
Collette Young shows the hole left in her tent during a bear attack early Saturday in American Fork Canyon. No one was injured. (Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News)
Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News
Collette Young shows the hole left in her tent during a bear attack early Saturday in American Fork Canyon. No one was injured.
"It does not appear that the very minimal amount of food in the campsite had anything to do with the bear attack," Utah County Sheriff's Lt. Darren Gilbert said.
The boy, Samuel Evan Ives of Pleasant Grove, was camping with his family in a wooded area just north of the Timpanooke campgrounds Sunday night when a bear slashed through his tent and pulled him out in his sleeping bag.
"We're trying to make sense of this very tragic event," grandfather Eldon Ives said. "It's something that just doesn't make sense. It's like a bad dream. We're still struggling with how to grieve."
"Some things you're prepared for, but we weren't prepared for news that our grandson and child was killed by a bear. That's one of the hardest things we're struggling with — the nonsensical nature of this tragedy."
Ives said the family appreciates the outpouring of concern but asks for respect and privacy as they grieve. A trust fund has been set up for Samuel Ives' family through Wells Fargo Bank.
This is the first black bear-related death recorded in Utah, officials said.
The family heard the boy's screams but couldn't find him outside, so they reported an abduction. Officers from several agencies searched for two hours before they found the boy's body nearly 400 yards from the family's multiroom tent, Utah County Sheriff's Lt. Dennis Harris said.
"It's just really sad," said Jim Karpowitz, director of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. "You don't expect that kind of thing when you are going camping with your family."
A 250- to 350-pound adult black bear was killed about 11:40 a.m. Monday after extensive tracking by 26 dogs and five houndsmen.
Officers shot the bear in the shoulder Sunday night, somewhere between Timpanooke and Ridge Line, but he ran off, and the dogs temporarily lost his scent. The bear wandered until he was finally tracked down and fatally shot.
The animal's body was pulled off the mountain by a Utah Highway Patrol helicopter, then driven to Utah State University for testing, said Mike Fowlks, chief of law enforcement for the Division of Wildlife Resources.
Jake Francom shows a pillow that was dragged away from his tent by a black bear early Saturday, a day before Sunday night's fatal mauling in the same primitive area. Dark marks on the pillow are the bear's paw prints. (Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News)
Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News
Jake Francom shows a pillow that was dragged away from his tent by a black bear early Saturday, a day before Sunday night's fatal mauling in the same primitive area. Dark marks on the pillow are the bear's paw prints.
Wildlife officials said later Monday that DNA tests confirmed the bear was in fact responsible for the fatal mauling.
"Normally, they're just a nuisance, not killers," Karpowitz said. "This is the first (death) we've ever dealt with."
Officials also were investigating whether the bear was the same one that clawed into a tent of campers earlier. Those campers were questioning why the area wasn't shut down after they reported a bear scavenged in their campsite and ripped their tent.
Jake Francom, 26, camped with his girlfriend, his brother and two other friends Friday night in the same primitive area just above Timpanooke. The site is not a specific Forest Service campground and has no services.
He awoke when something outside the tent hit him in the head about 5:30 a.m. Saturday.
Thinking it was someone moving in the tent, he said, "Stop it." But when he felt two more hard hits, he realized it was a bear.
Jake told his girlfriend to get out, yelling at a friend in another tent to grab his gun.
The bear ripped through the tent, taking a bite out of his pillow.
The men shot at the bear a few times. It walked away from the camp, then stopped to stare at the campers before it lumbered off.
The campers drove down the canyon and called their parents, who called police.
After hearing about Sunday's fatality and having their sons' experience characterized as a "tent-brushing," the parents said they were frustrated and wondered why the area wasn't closed.
"Why would they let another family up there?" mother Kathy Francom said. "All they had to do was shut a gate (to the campground) and that boy wouldn't be gone."
"It broke me down," father Kurt Francom said of watching the news of the mauling early Monday. "It could have been my boy."
Uinta National Forest officials defended their decision to keep the forest open, saying the information they received about the bear didn't include many details, and they were told the proper agencies had been notified.
Wildlife officials drag the body of a black bear Monday. DNA tests showed the bear killed a boy Sunday. (KSL-TV)
KSL-TV
Wildlife officials drag the body of a black bear Monday. DNA tests showed the bear killed a boy Sunday.
Plus, the area the family chose wasn't actually a campground but merely a flat spot of land.
"We are indeed sorry," said John Logan, acting district ranger for the Uinta National Forest. "Our hearts are going out to the family."
When they learned of the bear-related fatality about 2 a.m., they sent rangers to sweep campgrounds in the area. The area was sparsely populated with campers, but the rangers told them about the mauling and asked them to leave, said Loyal Clark, Uinta National Forest spokeswoman.
The division also posts signs at campgrounds and trailheads to notify campers and hikers about bears in the area and necessary precautions.
"We're doing everything we can to make people bear-aware," Karpowitz said. "It's hard to plan for an event that's never ever happened in the state of Utah."
Division of Wildlife Resources immediately classified the bear as a Level Three animal and sent out officers with a shoot-to-kill prerogative, Karpowitz said.
A Level Three bear is one that has displayed aggressive behavior toward humans, has little fear of humans or has attempted to kill domestic pets, according to information from the division.
Level Two animals need to be relocated, and Level One animals prompt officials to post signs about potential sightings.
From 1990 to 2007, there were 49 fatal attacks involving bears in North America, with 29 of those attacks occurring since 1990.
Being knowledgeable about the area and the potential dangers is the best way to avoid problems, Clark said.
"It's as safe as it's going to get out there," Clark said. "If there are hazards, we're going to try to mitigate those, evaluate those and take appropriate action.
http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0%2C1249 ... %2C00.html
And folks wonder why I carry when I hike, fish and backpack... Damned sad losing a kid that way...
The 11-year-old was pulled from his tent
By Sara Israelsen
Deseret Morning News
AMERICAN FORK CANYON — A black bear that fatally mauled an 11-year-old boy in American Fork Canyon might not have been motivated by leftover camp food, officials said Monday.
Collette Young shows the hole left in her tent during a bear attack early Saturday in American Fork Canyon. No one was injured. (Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News)
Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News
Collette Young shows the hole left in her tent during a bear attack early Saturday in American Fork Canyon. No one was injured.
"It does not appear that the very minimal amount of food in the campsite had anything to do with the bear attack," Utah County Sheriff's Lt. Darren Gilbert said.
The boy, Samuel Evan Ives of Pleasant Grove, was camping with his family in a wooded area just north of the Timpanooke campgrounds Sunday night when a bear slashed through his tent and pulled him out in his sleeping bag.
"We're trying to make sense of this very tragic event," grandfather Eldon Ives said. "It's something that just doesn't make sense. It's like a bad dream. We're still struggling with how to grieve."
"Some things you're prepared for, but we weren't prepared for news that our grandson and child was killed by a bear. That's one of the hardest things we're struggling with — the nonsensical nature of this tragedy."
Ives said the family appreciates the outpouring of concern but asks for respect and privacy as they grieve. A trust fund has been set up for Samuel Ives' family through Wells Fargo Bank.
This is the first black bear-related death recorded in Utah, officials said.
The family heard the boy's screams but couldn't find him outside, so they reported an abduction. Officers from several agencies searched for two hours before they found the boy's body nearly 400 yards from the family's multiroom tent, Utah County Sheriff's Lt. Dennis Harris said.
"It's just really sad," said Jim Karpowitz, director of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. "You don't expect that kind of thing when you are going camping with your family."
A 250- to 350-pound adult black bear was killed about 11:40 a.m. Monday after extensive tracking by 26 dogs and five houndsmen.
Officers shot the bear in the shoulder Sunday night, somewhere between Timpanooke and Ridge Line, but he ran off, and the dogs temporarily lost his scent. The bear wandered until he was finally tracked down and fatally shot.
The animal's body was pulled off the mountain by a Utah Highway Patrol helicopter, then driven to Utah State University for testing, said Mike Fowlks, chief of law enforcement for the Division of Wildlife Resources.
Jake Francom shows a pillow that was dragged away from his tent by a black bear early Saturday, a day before Sunday night's fatal mauling in the same primitive area. Dark marks on the pillow are the bear's paw prints. (Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News)
Steve Fidel, Deseret Morning News
Jake Francom shows a pillow that was dragged away from his tent by a black bear early Saturday, a day before Sunday night's fatal mauling in the same primitive area. Dark marks on the pillow are the bear's paw prints.
Wildlife officials said later Monday that DNA tests confirmed the bear was in fact responsible for the fatal mauling.
"Normally, they're just a nuisance, not killers," Karpowitz said. "This is the first (death) we've ever dealt with."
Officials also were investigating whether the bear was the same one that clawed into a tent of campers earlier. Those campers were questioning why the area wasn't shut down after they reported a bear scavenged in their campsite and ripped their tent.
Jake Francom, 26, camped with his girlfriend, his brother and two other friends Friday night in the same primitive area just above Timpanooke. The site is not a specific Forest Service campground and has no services.
He awoke when something outside the tent hit him in the head about 5:30 a.m. Saturday.
Thinking it was someone moving in the tent, he said, "Stop it." But when he felt two more hard hits, he realized it was a bear.
Jake told his girlfriend to get out, yelling at a friend in another tent to grab his gun.
The bear ripped through the tent, taking a bite out of his pillow.
The men shot at the bear a few times. It walked away from the camp, then stopped to stare at the campers before it lumbered off.
The campers drove down the canyon and called their parents, who called police.
After hearing about Sunday's fatality and having their sons' experience characterized as a "tent-brushing," the parents said they were frustrated and wondered why the area wasn't closed.
"Why would they let another family up there?" mother Kathy Francom said. "All they had to do was shut a gate (to the campground) and that boy wouldn't be gone."
"It broke me down," father Kurt Francom said of watching the news of the mauling early Monday. "It could have been my boy."
Uinta National Forest officials defended their decision to keep the forest open, saying the information they received about the bear didn't include many details, and they were told the proper agencies had been notified.
Wildlife officials drag the body of a black bear Monday. DNA tests showed the bear killed a boy Sunday. (KSL-TV)
KSL-TV
Wildlife officials drag the body of a black bear Monday. DNA tests showed the bear killed a boy Sunday.
Plus, the area the family chose wasn't actually a campground but merely a flat spot of land.
"We are indeed sorry," said John Logan, acting district ranger for the Uinta National Forest. "Our hearts are going out to the family."
When they learned of the bear-related fatality about 2 a.m., they sent rangers to sweep campgrounds in the area. The area was sparsely populated with campers, but the rangers told them about the mauling and asked them to leave, said Loyal Clark, Uinta National Forest spokeswoman.
The division also posts signs at campgrounds and trailheads to notify campers and hikers about bears in the area and necessary precautions.
"We're doing everything we can to make people bear-aware," Karpowitz said. "It's hard to plan for an event that's never ever happened in the state of Utah."
Division of Wildlife Resources immediately classified the bear as a Level Three animal and sent out officers with a shoot-to-kill prerogative, Karpowitz said.
A Level Three bear is one that has displayed aggressive behavior toward humans, has little fear of humans or has attempted to kill domestic pets, according to information from the division.
Level Two animals need to be relocated, and Level One animals prompt officials to post signs about potential sightings.
From 1990 to 2007, there were 49 fatal attacks involving bears in North America, with 29 of those attacks occurring since 1990.
Being knowledgeable about the area and the potential dangers is the best way to avoid problems, Clark said.
"It's as safe as it's going to get out there," Clark said. "If there are hazards, we're going to try to mitigate those, evaluate those and take appropriate action.
http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0%2C1249 ... %2C00.html
And folks wonder why I carry when I hike, fish and backpack... Damned sad losing a kid that way...
