A skier had to be airlifted out of the Alaskan wilderness after getting attacked by a brown bear. The man was with two other people hiking up a mountain on the Alaskan panhandle when they stumbled upon a bear den with a mother and her five cubs.
The mother bear left the den and started attacking one of the skiers, sending him tumbling down the steep mountain trail. Luckily, the skiers were prepared and used a satellite communication device to call for help. Alaska State Troopers located the hikers at 1,600 feet and had to call the Coast Guard to help rescue the group.
The Coast Guard dispatched an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, which airlifted the skier to Juneau, where he was taken to a hospital for treatment for injuries on his face and hands. The other two skiers managed to avoid the bear and climbed back down the mountain unharmed. Officials have not identified the injured skier or the extent of his injuries.
"Their satellite communication device provided the precise GPS coordinates and elevation of their location. Equally important, they had brightly colored fabric to signal the helicopter as we approached," Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Will Sirokman, who was co-pilot in the rescue, said in a statement. "This was absolutely crucial to us finding them in a timely manner."
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