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Black Bear Attacks Child at Great Smoky Mountains National Park

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An 8-year-old Florida boy sustained minor injuries Monday evening when attacked by a young black bear in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. A bear thought to have been behind the attack was later killed by rangers.

The attack was reported about 7:30 p.m. local time along the Rainbow Falls Trail, a popular hiking trail off the Cherokee Orchard Road just south of Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

Rangers say Evan Pala, of Boca Raton, Florida, was playing along LeConte Creek about 300 yards up Rainbow Falls Trail from the trailhead when he was reportedly attacked twice by a bear. The boy suffered non-life-threatening cuts, scratches and puncture wounds. The boy’s father, John Pala, also of Boca Raton was able to drive off the animal with sticks and rocks, but sustained some minor injuries himself.

The boy was transported by Gatlinburg Ambulance to Fort Sanders Sevier Medical Center in Sevierville Tennessee, and the father drove to the same facility for treatment.

Based upon the father’s description of the bear and the location, Rangers went to the scene and encountered a bear that acted aggressively towards them as well. They shot the bear. They did locate a child’s shoe and a cap at the sight that they believe belonged to the family.

Park Wildlife Management personnel also responded. They described the bear as an estimated 55-pound male – probably a yearling. The animal was transported to the University of Tennessee Veterinary Medical Center for a necropsy to establish that it is the bear that attacked the child.

No names or home town are available for release at this time.

Comments

I totally agree, the only issue is that we can't have bears and kids playing together. So, either don't build a house in the woods and complain about the animals or stay in the city. If you are visiting a State Park that is known for bears, heck you can't walk two feet in Gatlinburg, TN without someone selling you a cute little black bear stuffed animal, T-shirt or salt & pepper shakers. So pay attention, carry a whistle, if not bear mace. So it's sad but, humans “WILL ALWAYS COME FIRST”, when it comes to bear confrontations. I have to adimit I agree to a depending on the situation.
I would have also killed this bear, to help save the other bears! Humans have a way of wiping out what they fear or hate. I have large dogs and would have to always insist that any biting or sever mouthing or human aggression, is totally unacceptable from any dog of any size... period! Any animal that bites humans, MUST be rehabilitated, relocated or put down, humanely. Once an animal breaks that invisible line of fear and respect for humans and humans for bears, it becomes a recipe of disaster.
I have helped with various wildlife rescues in Tennesse and love all animals. I hoping to go back to EKU for wildlife biology.


Yet another bear attack in my favorite vacation spot. This time the young boy was injured and thankfully, not killed. We visit the Smokies at several times a year and usually see bears during our stay, frequently in Cades Cove and Roaring Fork. My husband has been in Boy Scouts for over 30 years and our sons are both Eagle Scouts so we respect animals in the wild and know better than to irritate or encourage wild animals to come in close contact with us. That said, several years ago, my son and husband did leave our car to photograph a young bear. Another tourist got within 10 feet of this bear and started using his flash on the camera, the bear stood up and growled--everyone else had enough sense to leave the area while that man continued to take photos. Thankfully, no one was injured that day, but this is a prime example of a dangerous situation. In our travels, we rarely see rangers in Cades Cove except in the Mill area and have not ever seen a ranger in the oaring Fork area. HI am impressed with the rangers and volunteers in the in Cataloochie where the elk were introduced. These volunteers and rangers keep an eye on what the tourists are doing so that the elk and tourists are safe and protected.
It seems that since there have now been 2 attacks in the last few years, that perhaps rangers should be patrolling the areas better???
When reading the article about this latest attack on April 11, 2009, it does not sound like the boy was doing anything wrong and the Father was close enough to frighten the bear and probably save his son's life. I do not think we should immediately criticize the parents without all of the information. I work with dog rescue so I love nimals and hate to see animals needlessly killed, but a bear that attacks a person cannot be trusted! The rangers' reported that the bear 's behavior was, "very strange" and made the decision to shoot the bear. I think the rangers made a wise decision, one that protects the rest of the tourists.


Most animal attacks (with the exception of those involving sick animals) are the fault of humans. Not necessarily the human that was attacked. Possibly other hikers had seen this young bear, felt sorry for it, and had been feeding it. A recipe for disaster. It is even possible that this family had been feeding it. I'm not saying they were, but we will never know. The point is that somewhere, somehow, a human being (or more than one) was most likely responsible for this attack. The bear pays with its life, before ever getting a real chance to live. People aren't defending "the animals more than "human life & safety"" as someone says above, they are simply seeing the tragedy in all of this. The boy should not have been hurt. The animal should not have been killed. The two principals here are innocent victims; yet someone is at fault: The parents? Other hikers? We will probably never know.
The rangers reported "strange behavior" from the bear. Good "buzz words" to justify shooting it. Most likely, killing the bear was the quickest and easiest "solution". Hazing or relocating (or preferably a combination of the two) would be costly, time consumming and probably not politically correct when a child was involved. Far easier to announce to the world, "We've killed the "monster" and the woods are once again safe for little children; when, of course, the woods have never (and never will be) 100% safe for anyone. I remember always telling my own children that the moment they step out of the car and walk into the woods, they have made a conscious decision to become a part of the food chain. Be smart, be aware, and you will be fine. Walk out there with the attitude, "I'm a human being! Nothing's gonna happen to me!" and you may be hurt or worse. Make like Bambi, because you are one of the smallest, most vulnerable creatures out there.
On more than one occasion I have seen people throw food out of their car window at roadside bears in Yellowstone. I don't know if these people are just stupid, uneducated or they simply don't care. In any case, fines should be quadrupled and education programs increased. Perhaps a "wildlife safety test" should be given to all vistors. Fill in the answers and return to a ranger station to receive a pin or perhaps a coupon for 15% off at park gift stores.....something.
Finally, I will say it once again. Wildlife attacks are very, very rare. At least when we are talking about mega-fauna (insect attacks are, of course, pretty common!) Attacks by bears, mountain lions etc. make the news because they are rare, not because they are common. Thousands of domestic dogs attack children every year. Many children die from such attacks. Yet we do not hear anyone saying that there are "too many dogs" or that "something needs to be done". Nor do these stories usually make the national headlines, because they are common. In Yellowstone, for example, I am told that your chance of being struck by lightning or being killed by a bear are about the same! Millions of people visit our parks and forests every year. A few dozen are injured by wildlife. Let's put this into perspective.


Very well stated, Frank C. Wildlife attacks in national parks resulting in serious injury or death are rare. A park visitor is far more likely to be injured or killed by auto accidents, severe weather, falling, rock falls, dehydration, etc. The most important thing to remember about wild animals is that they are wild. The less wild they are the more likely they are to be involved in confrontations with humans.


I spend every day in the Smokies hiking and see bear numerous times a day during the "hot" bear season.

I finally broke down and bought a can of bear spray based upon the length of time I solo hike deep in backcountry.

I just learned that it is ILLEGAL to have bear spray in the GSMNP as well as most other national parks.

The full details are here: http://yoursmokies.blogspot.com/2009/04/is-bear-pepper-spray-legal-or-il...

Don't break weapons laws on federal land!

Christopher Hibbard
SmokiesHiker for YourSmokies
http://www.YourSmokies.com


Christopher, that's an interesting issue you've shed some light on, and one the Traveler will definitely look into. Here in the West park officials routinely recommend bear spray. Thanks for bringing it to our attention.


Bear spray is ILLEGAL ?? That's insanity. I can understand people's points that don't want to allow concealed firearms in Parks, but I can NOT understand banning bear spray. Please, let's verify this Kurt :)


If bear spray is illegal ... I need to know. I'm planning a visit with my son in June and was planning on having some spray with me. Whatz the official word ??


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