On Wednesday, November 16th a 63 year old woman in Middletown, Maryland was attacked by a bear in her driveway. The attack was in a heavily wooded area 50 miles from Washington. This was the first bear attack in recent memory this close to home. 

At 9:20pm, Karen Osborne heard dogs barking from next door and went outside with her dog to see what was going on. Seconds later a 200 pound black bear appeared and scratched this grandmother’s arms, legs and face. Reports say she required around 80 stitches.

She called the police after being attacked and uttered these words to a 911 dispatcher, “I’m being attacked by this bear; he’s coming back. Hurry, he’s broken my arms and my legs. I can’t move, and I’m bleeding. And I’m going to die.”

Osborne’s husband came outside right as the emergency personnel arrived. She was taken to the hospital and her condition was reported as stable, none of the wounds were life threatening. Authorities think the woman came between the sow and her cubs and somehow angered the mother leading to an attack.

The bear was 1 of 30 bears in Maryland, all equipped with a collar to monitor the bear population. Shortly after the attack, wildlife officials set up traps to track the bear. 

The next morning, the bear was found near a small, rock cliff. The state’s wildlife management policy is to euthanize a bear after a human attack. The personnel fired 2 shots and the bear was dead.

Bear attacks are one of the most uncommon things and happen close to never. Thankfully, this woman survived. Is the growing bear population getting out of cotrol, #warriornation?

Here is what to do int he unlikely event you stumble on the same path as a bear: