Man and Son Attacked by Bear at Great Smoky Mountain National Park
Published at | Updated at
Lynn_Bystrom/iStock/Thinkstock(HAZEL CREEK, N.C.) — A man and his son were attacked by a bear Saturday night while on a multi-day backpacking trip in the Great Smoky Mountains.
According to a press release from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the 16-year-old boy was pulled from a hammock by the bear. The man’s father was then able to drive the bear away from their campsite.
The father and son were sleeping in hammocks about 10 feet apart, the release said, with food and equipment stored on aerial cables nearby.
The teen suffered multiple lacerations, including cuts to the head, but remained conscious during the incident and was listed in stable condition on Sunday afternoon.
Following the attack, the man and his son hiked to a nearby lakeshore, where campers with a boat took them across the lake. From there, the teen was airlifted to Mission Hospital in Asheville, N.C.
“While incidents with bears are rare,” Park Superintendent Cassius Cash said, “we ask park visitors to take necessary precautions while hiking in bear country and comply with all backcountry closures.”
“The safety of our visitors is our number one priority,” Cash added.
Copyright © 2015, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.