Face of Nation : US woman has been killed in a rare black bear attack on a secluded private island in Canada. Catherine Sweatt-Mueller, 62, left her cabin in the evening to check on her dogs but failed to return.
Her concerned mother rang police but when they got to the island they found a bear standing over Sweatt-Mueller’s body. Police shot dead the bear they believe was responsible.
Sweatt-Mueller, of Maple Plain, Minnesota, was on holiday earlier this month with her parents at Red Pine Island on Rainy Lake, near the US border. Her mother was worried when the dogs returned to the family’s cabin without her daughter, one of which was injured.
Two other black bears spotted nearby were also acting aggressively, Jim Davis of Ontario police told. “One was snapping its gums, gritting its teeth, stomping,” he said.
The bear’s body is being examined to see if officials can determine a cause for the attack. Conservation officers are currently searching the area to locate the two other animals.
Mr Davis called the attack a “unique incident” and something he has not seen in 11 years policing the region. “Attacks of this nature are extremely rare,” the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the victim.”
