Man attacked by bear in central Romania
A 58-year-old man was attacked by a bear in Mureș County, central Romania. Intervention teams arrived in the forest located between the localities of Torba (Măgherani commune) and Abud (Ghindari commune) after a call made on Sunday, March 22.
Upon arrival, rescuers found the victim was conscious and that he was alone at the time of the incident.
“We were requested to intervene to provide first aid to a 58-year-old person who was attacked by a bear in the forest. He was alone in the forest; according to reports, he was a tour guide in natural areas and appears to be a more experienced person when it comes to nature,” said a representative of ISU Mureș, cited by ProTV.
The man was reportedly exploring the surroundings on a bicycle when he was attacked. He was taken by the SMURD helicopter and transported to the Emergency Reception Unit in Târgu Mureș.
“Following the medical evaluation, it was found that the victim has multiple open wounds to the lower limbs and an open fracture to the left upper limb,” the cited source stated. He also had bite wounds on the right thigh.
This is the second such attack in Mureș County since the beginning of the year. Last month, a 45-year-old shepherd was attacked by a bear while grazing animals near the locality of Maiad. He also survived the attack.
Romania’s Senate recently adopted a bill that would double the quota of brown bears that can be hunted. A total of 859 specimens are to be killed preventively this year and next year. However, the bill must also pass the Chamber of Deputies, and the law must be promulgated by the president.
Environmental NGOs, however, say that the measure has insufficient backing and may not result in a decrease in incidents involving bears. Moreover, the measure may infringe upon EU legislation and lead to damage to the country’s biodiversity.
(Photo source: Inquam Photos | George Calin)
