Arizona man killed by bear in ‘unprovoked attack’
Arizona man, 66, is run over by bear in ‘unprovoked attack’ as he enjoys morning coffee outside a forest cabin he was building
- Steven Jackson, 66, was dragged 70 feet from an embankment where he succumbed to his injuries
- A neighbor shot the bear in an attempt to stop the attack, but it was too late
An Arizona man died Friday after an unprovoked black bear attack.
Steven Jackson, 66, was attacked by the bear as he was drinking his morning coffee in a wooded area of Groom Creek in Yavapai County where he was building a cabin, the county sheriff’s office said.
There was a struggle before the bear dragged Jackson 70 feet down an embankment while screaming for help.
Neighbors were on the scene quickly: “They were trying to get the bear to stop attacking it, there were honking horns, different things they were doing,” Rhodes said.
“We couldn’t stop the attack.”
The wooded area of Groom Creek where Steven Jackson was bitten to death by a black bear
A neighbor, hearing Jackson’s distress, shot the bear with a rifle, but it was too late. The bear is depicted after it was killed
A neighbor then arrived with a rifle and shot the animal to stop the attack, but Jackson was already dead.
“Our deepest condolences go out to Mr. Jackson’s family,” Sheriff David Rhodes said in a statement.
“I cannot express how deeply saddened this situation is and can only say that our prayers are with you.”
The sheriff’s office was called around 7:50 a.m. and arrived on the scene shortly after with animal control officers.
The sheriff’s office believes the attack was unprovoked and there was no food or anything obvious that would have attracted a bear.
At first glance, there didn’t seem to be anything on the site that would have led to a[n] attack by the bear, such as food, a place to cook or access to water,” the sheriff’s office said.
Darren Tucker, a field supervisor for the Arizona Game and Fish Department, said the bear is estimated to be 6 to 10 years old.
The investigation into the murder is ongoing and an autopsy of the bear will also be performed.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing and an autopsy of the bear will also be performed
Arizona has a healthy population of black bears, but attacks are rare
Officials expressed their condolences to Jackson’s family and reminded the public that this was a rare incident
Tucker stressed that while bear sightings are common in the Prescott area, attacks are rare.
The last fatal attack in the state, which has a healthy population of black bears, was in 2011.
The sheriff’s office also reminded the public that they cannot shoot bears unless the bear poses a threat to itself or someone else.
“These are extremely rare circumstances and we haven’t seen this before,” he said.
“We don’t want people to panic, shoot bears, shoot animals.”