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Officials are looking for a brown bear after it attacked a 67-year-old woman in Alaska on Tuesday. The woman was 2 miles from the trailhead on the popular Dome Trail in Chugach State Park when she was mauled. She managed to call the police, who arranged a multiagency rescue involving the Anchorage Police Department, the Bureau of Land Management, the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Fire Department, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and Alaska State Troopers.
The bear managed to drag the woman off trail, injuring her head, neck, and arm. After she explained that her injuries prevented her from moving, officials used a high-tech drone to help find her. They eventually arranged an emergency evacuation via helicopter. Fortunately, the hiker is in stable condition at this time. Megan Peters, a spokesperson for the Anchorage Police Department, told Alaska Public Media that the injuries were unlikely to be life-threatening.
As of Tuesday, officials had closed trails in the surrounding area to continue to search for the bear. “At this point it would absolutely be a needle in a haystack,” Cynthia Wardlow, a regional supervisor with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Division of Wildlife Conservation told Anchorage News.
“We’re just glad we were able to get appropriate resources in place, get appropriate personnel, to have the litany of agencies that were there also supporting our efforts to get paramedics back to the injured person and then getting that person to the hospital,” Peters said. “That’s really the most important thing, is to account for their well being.”
Bear attacks in the region are uncommon, but do occasionally happen. Those attacks typically involve grizzly bears. In fact, 29 percent of the country’s fatal bear attacks take place in Alaska. Between 2000 and 2017, there were 10 fatalities in the state.
Officials from the Anchorage Fire Department encourage hikers to share trip plans with friends and family before hitting trail. In a Facebook post, the department said: “Information regarding your planned route can be invaluable as we try to locate you in case of an emergency. To be extra prepared, leave a copy of your trip plan underneath your windshield wiper.”
Want some tips for hiking in bear country? Check our these articles from our archives:
9 Bear Safety Tips From a Bear Biologist
Bear Spray Could Save Your Life. Here’s How to Use it Right.
Listen: How Two Friends Fended Off a Grizzly Attack
From 2025