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Bear attacks, kills oil sands worker in Canada

Oftencold said:
Bear spray's main function is to turn the bear's lunch in to a hot'n'spicy deli item.

Charging bear.

Thirty feet.

"Oh! Sh-" Crunch!
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They should at least allow oil field workers to carry a sidearm, it's odd that the worker couldn't defend himself.
 
AJiveMan said:
They should at least allow oil field workers to carry a sidearm, it's odd that the worker couldn't defend himself.
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The article doesn't give any details about the nature of the incident so I think you're jumping to some conclusions - for all you know they had spray and a gun but weren't able to use them to prevent that attack for some reason.

I'm no expert but I'm not convinced how effective a handgun would be against a determined bear but in general I'm not sure anyone can assess what protective measures may be suitable without having any idea exactly what happened.
 
HonestJoe said:
The article doesn't give any details about the nature of the incident so I think you're jumping to some conclusions - for all you know they had spray and a gun but weren't able to use them to prevent that attack for some reason.

I'm no expert but I'm not convinced how effective a handgun would be against a determined bear but in general I'm not sure anyone can assess what protective measures may be suitable without having any idea exactly what happened.
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A large caliber pistol I would think might help. Something on the order of a .357 magnum, a 41 mag or 44 mag revolver, all are powerful handguns.

They never revealed the size of the bear either, or the kind of bear.

Not jumping to conclusions at all. But if people are working in the bush, they do need to take some measures to try to be safe.
 
AJiveMan said:
A large caliber pistol I would think might help. Something on the order of a .357 magnum, a 41 mag or 44 mag revolver, all are powerful handguns.

They never revealed the size of the bear either, or the kind of bear.

Not jumping to conclusions at all. But if people are working in the bush, they do need to take some measures to try to be safe.
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It was most likely a Grizzly, in which case a handgun would be almost useless unless used as a noisemaker.
 
tecoyah said:
It was most likely a Grizzly, in which case a handgun would be almost useless unless used as a noisemaker.
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I found another media story, CBC (Canada) they claim it was a large black bear. The worker was a female.

The RCMP say they were called just after 2 p.m. MT Wednesday after receiving reports of a large, male black bear attacking and killing a worker at the Suncor base camp.

The female worker was declared dead on the scene.

RCMP members shot and killed the male bear, who was still in the area when they arrived.
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Bear attack at Suncor site kills 1 worker - Edmonton - CBC News

Dang.
 
AJiveMan said:
They should at least allow oil field workers to carry a sidearm, it's odd that the worker couldn't defend himself.
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Hum. Where I live we have Alaskan Brown Bears. They're essentially grizzlies -- just bigger. It's not unusual to have one wander into your yard I might use a side arm to avoid an attack from a charging Brown Bear, but my best odds for success in that case would be to shoot myself in the head.

:shock:

The workers, or at least one trained worker in a work gang ought to have a large caliber rifle. That's how our Forest Service work parties go into the forest.

(Usually, a Brown Bear is bluffing when they charge. I have this awful vision of shooting myself to escape a mauling, and having the bear standing over my body saying, "Dude! I was just kidding!")
 
Oftencold said:
Hum. Where I live we have Alaskan Brown Bears. They're essentially grizzlies -- just bigger. It's not unusual to have one wander into your yard I might use a side arm to avoid an attack from a charging Brown Bear, but my best odds for success in that case would be to shoot myself in the head.

:shock:

The workers, or at least one trained worker in a work gang ought to have a large caliber rifle. That's how our Forest Service work parties go into the forest.

(Usually, a Brown Bear is bluffing when they charge. I have this awful vision of shooting myself to escape a mauling, and having the bear standing over my body saying, "Dude! I was just kidding!")
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I know Alaska is a tough place to live, I was stationed @ Eielson.

According to CBC, the attack happened in the camp, which makes me think about how we used to either burn our garbage and trash and keep food stuff tightly capped in order to prevent scents of both, which attract wildlife. I wonder if the people in the camp might have been a bit careless?
 
Where's Liam Neeson when you need him?
 
AJiveMan said:
I know Alaska is a tough place to live, I was stationed @ Eielson.

According to CBC, the attack happened in the camp, which makes me think about how we used to either burn our garbage and trash and keep food stuff tightly capped in order to prevent scents of both, which attract wildlife. I wonder if the people in the camp might have been a bit careless?
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It wouldn't surprise me. But sometimes, not very often, it doesn't take much. This time of year the biggest threat is probably accidentally coming between a sow and her cub. She bears are very protective of their young.
 
Your chance of killing a bear with a handgun are zip and none.
 
tecoyah said:
It was most likely a Grizzly, in which case a handgun would be almost useless unless used as a noisemaker.
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I'd have to imagine that a .44 or .357 Magnum would at least give a charging bear pause. Frankly, if that's not sufficient, they actually make .50 handguns for hunting these days as well.

I'm sure they kick like a mule, and might even sprain your wrist, but they should get the job done. :lol:
 
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HonestJoe said:
The article doesn't give any details about the nature of the incident so I think you're jumping to some conclusions - for all you know they had spray and a gun but weren't able to use them to prevent that attack for some reason.

I'm no expert but I'm not convinced how effective a handgun would be against a determined bear but in general I'm not sure anyone can assess what protective measures may be suitable without having any idea exactly what happened.
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Depending on the bear my uncle told me when he went hunting a bear tried chasing him, he emptied his entire mag for his sidearm, granted it wasn't high caliber but certain bears are far from having no durability.
 
Gathomas88 said:
I'd have to imagine that a .44 or .357 Magnum would at least give a charging bear pause. Frankly, if that's not sufficient, they actually make .50 handguns these days as well.

I'm sure they kick like a mule, and might even sprain your wrist, but they should get the job done. :lol:
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Broken wrist seems better than getting mauled to me XD
 
Since there are no details of the "attack" worth a damn we do not know what happened.

There are several things to remember. A bear in a bi-pedal (standing) position is a threat posture for other bears. It essentially means "I am going to mess you up or kill you" We walk bi-pedal so we are SOL from the get go.

Second IF this incident occurred recently it may well have been a sow protecting her young in which case the bear was only protecting its kids.

As a wildlife biologist who has my fair share of bear encounters I always found that I was in the wrong and since bears cannot get rabies or distemper that is not an issue.

The oil worker was probably somewhere he should not have been and got messed with.

What these guys should be equipped with is the basic fundamentals of bear behavior, territory and what pisses them off. Not going on picnics in bear country.

Wolfman 24
 
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