Judge awards $1.9M to family of boy killed by bear

Judge awards $1.9M to family of boy killed by bear

Thursday, May 5, 2011

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On Tuesday of this week a federal judge awarded nearly $2 million to the family of Samuel Ives, an 11-year-old boy killed in 2007 by a black bear in the American Fork Canyon near Salt Lake City, Utah. The boy was dragged from his tent and mauled by a bear on the night of June 17, 2007.

Ives’s mother and stepfather contend that their son was killed due to negligence on the part of the U.S. Forest Service. The bear that killed Sam had attacked another man 12 hours prior at the same campsite where Ives and his family were staying. According to the lawsuit, Forest officials searched for the bear after its first attack, but were unable to find it. Unfortunately they failed to issue a warning to other campers staying at the same campground.

The U.S. District Judge found that both federal and state government agencies, including the Forest Service, were liable for Ives’s death. The judge found the Forest Service to be 65% at fault for failing to warn the public about the potential safety risks of camping in the area. The Division of Wildlife Resources was found to be at 25% fault for its lack of communication with the Forest Service, and the family was deemed to be 10% at fault for leaving food wrappers and trash in their tent.

What are your thoughts? Do you think the Forest Service was negligent to the tune of $2 million dollars? If these are punitive damages, who do they punish? Ultimately it is we tax payers who will be writing this check. Moreover, does this set a precedent where any accident, or anything that could potentially go wrong, become the focus of a lawsuit aimed towards national and state parks? Just as one example - does this mean that if there's snow on the ground, or if it's raining, that park rangers have a duty to warn all hikers that trails might be slippery?


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

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Animal Planet: Story of bear attack in Cherokee N.F. to air tonight

Animal Planet: Story of bear attack in Cherokee N.F. to air tonight

Friday, December 4, 2009

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Many of you will probably recall the story of the Ohio woman and her two small children that were attacked by a bear in the Cherokee National Forest back in 2006.

On April 13, 2006, Susan Cenkus and her children were hiking near the Chilhowee Campground near Benton Falls when a 200-pound black bear grabbed her 2-year-old son. The mother screamed for help and then launched herself at the animal - nearly losing her life in the process.

The bear tore at her neck, tossed her aside and then grabbed her 6-year-old daughter, Elora. The little girl didn't survive the attack.

Elora's death was only the second fatal attack by a black bear in Tennessee. The other was in 2000 in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Now the world will have a chance to hear the full story of how Mrs. Cenkus risked her life to save her children during the attack on the Animal Planet show "I'm Alive", which will air tonight at 9 and 11 p.m., EST.

You can read more about the attack by clicking here.




Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com Detailed information on trails in the Smoky Mountains; includes trail descriptions, key features, pictures, video, maps, elevation profiles, news, hiking gear store, and more.

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Bear Stalked Boy in Smokies

Bear Stalked Boy in Smokies

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

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Preliminary results from the necropsy of the bear that attacked the boy in the Smoky Mountains last week were released yesterday. Although preliminary, the results confirmed that the bear that attacked the eight-year-old Florida boy did not have rabies.

Additionally, park officials said that neither the boy, nor his family, did anything to provoke the attack. None of the family members were carrying any food with them, however, the father said that they had fried chicken about an hour before the attack and the smell of the meal may have been in their clothes.

Officials believe the attack was predatory, with the bear targeting the smallest member of the family. One park official said that the bear "stalked the boy as prey".

Park officials are also 100% sure now that they’ve killed the right bear. Proof of this was confirmed when parts of a tennis shoe were found in the stomach of the 86-pound bear. The shoe matched the one that the boy's father lost while fighting the bear off of his son.

Interestingly, the author of “Your Smokies” blog reported that another bear acted aggressively towards him as he was returning from his hike on the Lead Cove Trail in Cades Cove. This happened just one day after the attack on the Florida boy.

The question or suggestion has been floated on a couple of forums and blogs, so I’ll ask it here again: is the extreme drought in the Smokies causing food shortages for bears which is resulting in them acting more aggressively? If this is the case, visitors to the Smokies, especially hikers and campers, should take special precaution while in the area.

To put this in perspective, however, this was only the eighth bear attack in the Smoky Mountains in the last 10 years. Only one of those attacks resulted in a fatality. With roughly 1,600 black bears in the park and more than 9 million visitors each year, your chances of being attacked are extremely slim.

Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

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Smoky Mountain Bear Attack: Follow-up

Smoky Mountain Bear Attack: Follow-up

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

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I just wanted to give an update with regards to a couple of follow-up details on the bear attack that occurred near Gatlinburg on Monday evening.

As was widely reported yesterday, an eight-year-old Florida boy was attacked by a bear near the trailhead of the Rainbow Falls Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The boy required 35 stitches and staples for wounds to his arms, torso and the back of his head.

I read some speculation on a popular forum that there was a possibility that the boy somehow provoked the bear. This doesn't seem to be the case. Based on reports from the boy and his father it sounds like the attack was completely unprovoked. The family was simply taking photos by the creek near the trailhead when the bear appeared from behind a tree, as reported by the young boy.

The bear actually attacked the boy twice. Both times the boy's father and his 10-year-old brother had to fight it off with sticks and rocks.

The bear was originally reported as a young cub weighing 55 pounds. Today's Orlando Sentinel article reports the bear as being a young male weighing in at 86 pounds, making him a yearling.

Within minutes of the attack forest rangers were on the scene. They found a bear in the vicinity that acted aggressively and shot it. Although they're fairly certain that this was the same bear that attacked the boy, they won't know for sure until a necropsy is performed.

The linked article also includes a short video interview with the boy, his father and his brother.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

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