Black Bear Swats Runner on Popular Trail in British Columbia

A hiker was descending from the popular Coquitlam Crunch trail in British Columbia, Canada, when a bear approached her and swiped at her leg on August 29.

Sam Abdullah recorded this video and posted it on YouTube. Abdullah told Storyful he was walking up the trail when he saw the bear coming out of the bushes.

“I started filming when a girl was running down from the crunch and ended up in front of the bear,” he said.

The footage shows the bear emerging from the bushes and approaching the runner, who remains very still, before it swats her leg.

“We started yelling and coming closer to the bear to distract him,” Abdullah said.

The jogger was able to run away to safety. The British Columbia Conservation Service has temporarily shut down the trail as they attempt to trap the bear. The conservation service urged the public to “be vigilant, take safety precautions” and “report any bear sightings in the area.”

Although such attacks are rare, a woman in Saskatchewan was killed by a black bear on August 20, the CBC reported. Credit: Sam Abdullah via Storyful