Grizzly Bear Attack on Elementary School Children in Bella Coola, Canada

Bella Coola Elementary School shown in Bella Coola satellite image from Google Maps

 

On November 20, 2025, a bit before 2 p.m., a group of elementary school children were attacked by a grizzly bear, not far from their school. At least two adult men were with the children. It appears they and two others, including at least one child, were severely injured during the attack. At least one of the men is reported to have been severely injured while fight the bear and protecting the children. Two of the victims were listed in critical condition, two others were listed as serious, and seven others were treated at the scene with less serious injuries.

Emergency Health Services spokesman Brian Twaites said in a statement that the attack happened on a trail near Highway 20, and two ambulances and a community paramedic responded.

“Paramedics provided emergency medical treatment to four patients and transported them to hospital. Two patients were in critical condition and two were in serious condition,” he said.

The attack is said to have occurred on a trail near Highway 20 and the Four Mile residential development in Bella Coola, British Columbia, Canada. The Acwsalcta elementary school is located about two blocks from the highway, inside the Four Mile subdivision. Dense woods are across Labouchere Avenue from the elementary school between Highway 20 and the Bella Coola River. Here is a description of the Four Mile Subdivision:

  Four Mile Subdivision is located at Bella Coola British Columbia. It is part of the Bella Coola Region and consists of much the same regional terrain and wilderness surroundings. The majority of the population there is also the Nuxalk Tribal Band. This area is more of the residential part of Bella Coola with more sightings of the Sasquatch and other Mysterious Creatures that inhabit the region. Four Mile Subdivision is located on the east side of Bella Coola. Four Mile Subdivision also has a school within and a sand and gravel pit.

One of the defenders is one of the victims in critical condition. A facebook post from Shani Hance named two defenders as relatives, cousins Russell and Nick. One mother of a child involved in the incident, Veronica Schooner, writes that bear spray was used.

 Schooner said her son and other pupils had been hit with bear spray as the teachers fought off the bear.

As this is Canada, none of the defenders had a firearm. Canadian regulations make it very difficult for most people to possess the most effective defense against bear attack, handguns. Handguns tend to be more effective than long guns, because it is easier to keep a handgun on the person, and under control during a bear attack.

The bear is reported to be "on the loose". Authorities are asking people to stay inside.  One poster on facebook states this has been a bad year for bears, with bears breaking into houses, and more bears than usual being seen. From Michelle Fawcett on facebook:

 There is a lot of unusual grizzly activity in the valley this year, like house break ins and higher grizzly population in general. And now this attack. So very tragic.

British Columbia banned most grizzly bear hunting in December of 2017. Many predicted the number of bear attacks would increase because grizzly bears would become less fearful of humans. The Bella Coola valley has a very high concentration of grizzly bears.

The monetary support for banning the hunting of grizzly bears came mostly from Nature United, a radical deep green organization. It is an affiliate of the Nature Conservancy.

James Shelton avidly studied bear attacks in the area and wrote several books about the subject.  He predicted bear attacks would increase when hunting pressure was reduced.

This article has relied on early reporting from several sources including the Canadian Press and Facebook. More details well come to light as an investigation is done.

Analysis: The people who live in Bella Coola tend to be hunters by tradition and inclination. They have lived with grizzly bears a long time. They know the best way to avoid conflict with grizzly bears is kill the bears who become too familiar with humans. This teaches the surviving bears to avoid humans. When the scent of humans becomes associated with the remains of dead bears, bears learn humans are dangerous. As bears cause more and more problems in Bella Coola, expect more and more bears to be killed in unsanctioned ways. Nearly any projectile which penetrates a bear's abdominal or thoracic cavity will cause death. The difference is whether it happens in minutes or days.

 

©2025 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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