A 10-year-old boy in the US was bitten by a black bear while playing in his grandparents’ garden.
The animal then tried to drag the young child away before being shot and killed by police, Connecticut officials said.
The boy was injured but survived. He was taken to hospital for treatment with injuries to his thigh, claw marks on his back and bites to his feet and ankles.
The boy’s grandfather, James Butler, witnessed the attack. He said his grandson was playing near the trampoline when the bear emerged from the dense woods behind his home.
“I heard him yelling ‘bear’ and when I looked up I saw his leg was in the bear’s mouth and the bear was trying to drag him across the lawn,” Mr Butler told Republican-American in Waterbury people newspaper.
To scare the animal away, Mr Butler, who is in a wheelchair, said he threw a metal rod at its head.
The bear initially let go of the boy, but then grabbed him a second time and tried to roll the boy onto his back with his paws.
Mr Butler said a neighbour was alarmed by the child’s screams and ran into the garden, waving a pipe and yelling, successfully scaring the bear.
‘A big threat’
After Mr Butler and the boy were safely inside the house, the animal returned, walked up the wheelchair ramp and stared at them through the screen door.
“We think he came through the screen. There’s no question that he’s a big threat,” he said.
Shortly after, state police and officials from the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection arrived and shot and killed the bear.
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Connecticut’s bear population is growing, increasing the risk of dangerous encounters between animals and humans, according to state biologist Jenny Dixon.
Bears are becoming more accustomed to humans and are taking an interest in their food, she said.
There have been several bear attacks in the United States in recent months.
Four days ago, a hunter knock down Was attacked by a grizzly in Montana but managed to escape.
A 40-year-old hiker is believed to have died in March suspected attack Located north of Yellowstone National Park, Montana.