Mama Bear Attacks Car in Japan After Driver Stops Near Its Cub
Police in Hokkaido, northern Japan, have released dramatic surveillance footage showing a brown bear attacking a passenger car.
The incident happened at around 7:30 p.m. local time on Tuesday, September 29, in the city of Bifuka.
Hokkaido Police
The 30-year-old driver was traveling through a forested area when she spotted a mother bear with her cub on the road – what followed was a violent defensive attack that left deep marks on the vehicle.
Bear Jumps Onto the Hood
According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, the two bears initially began moving away from the car, but everything changed when the driver stopped the vehicle.
The large brown bear, standing approximately 1.5 meters tall and weighing around 100 kilograms, suddenly rose onto its hind legs, turned around and charged toward the front of the car.
Driven by a defensive instinct, the bear repeatedly jumped onto the hood, slammed its body against the vehicle and scratched and bit the metal with its long, sharp claws before retreating into the forest with its cub.
Driver Uninjured, Hood Left With a Hole
The driver, who was alone in the vehicle, was left badly shaken by the attack but fortunately escaped without injury. She had been on a phone call with her partner while driving when the incident occurred.
The car was not so lucky – a police inspection found deep scratches and claw marks, visible dents caused by the bear's weight and a hole in the hood where the animal broke through the metal during the attack.
Japan Records Record Number of Bear Attacks
The incident is far from an isolated case, as Japan has recently experienced a sharp increase in encounters with bears. A lack of food in the forests is reportedly pushing the animals closer to urban areas and roads.
According to Japan's Ministry of the Environment, bears have killed six people across Japan since April this year. In the previous fiscal year, the country recorded a record 13 deaths and more than 100 bear attacks. Following the latest incident, local authorities in Hokkaido warned drivers to exercise extreme caution when traveling through forested areas.
