In this 2019 photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is a grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) in Grand Teton National Park, Wyo. Grizzly bears are slowly expanding in the northern Rocky Mountains but scientists say they need continued protections and have concluded no other areas of the country would be suitable for the fearsome animals. The Fish and Wildlife Service on Wednesday, March 31, 2021, released its first assessment in almost a decade on the status of grizzly bears in the contiguous U.S. (Joe Lieb/USFWS via AP)
Washington (AFP): A man who fended off attacks from a wild grizzly bear for a week straight in the Alaskan wilderness is recovering from his injuries after he was found stranded at an encampment, the US Coast Guard said.
An aircrew first spotted an "SOS" sign on top of a shack during a routine helicopter flight over the west Alaskan coast last Friday, according to a Coast Guard statement. It wasn't until the aircraft flew back to inspect the message that it noticed a man waving two hands in the air.
The gesture "is considered an international distress signal," the statement said.
"The aircrew landed and made contact with the individual, who requested medical care after being attacked by a bear a few days earlier," the Coast Guard said.
The bear attack victim suffered from a leg injury and bruising on his torso. He told authorities he was stalked by the bear, which he said returned to his camp site every night for a week.
The Coast Guard transported the victim to the nearby town of Nome, where he was treated for his injuries.
The man had been reported missing by his friends after he did not come back to Nome.- AFP
