Veteran describes grizzly bear attack as “most brutal” experience ever

Shayne Patrick Burke was on a short hike to photograph owls in the backcountry of Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming this month when he spotted a grizzly bear cub about 150 to 200 feet in front of him.

Mr. Burke knew immediately that the boy’s presence was a sign of trouble, he wrote on Instagram.

Moments later, 35-year-old Mr Burke was attacked by the boy’s mother.

He turned over, lay on his stomach and clasped his hands behind his neck, following advice he had read about grizzly bear attacks, he said.

During the attack on May 19, the bear repeatedly bit Mr. Burke, picked him up and threw him to the ground before, he wrote, one of his screams “unfortunately, but fortunately, drew her attention to my head.”

It was a terrible moment, but ultimately it saved his life.

The bear bit Mr. Burke on the neck, but his hands and arms were still folded behind it and, crucially, he had reached for a can of bear spray when he saw the cub.

“I never let go of the bear spray can,” he wrote. “When she bit my neck, she simultaneously bit the bear spray can and it exploded in her mouth.”

The explosion scared the bear away.

Mr Burke, a disabled veteran in the Army Reserve, said the attack was “the most brutal” he had ever experienced, adding: “I’ve had people shoot at me, mortar shells fired at me and IEDs detonated.”

Grand Teton National Park said Mr Burke, who was visiting from Massachusetts, was released from the hospital on Monday and is expected to make a full recovery.

The park said the attack appeared to be a defensive move by the bear, which was responding to a “surprise encounter.” The bear has not been identified and Grand Teton said no further “management actions,” which could include euthanizing the bear, are needed.

On Instagram, Mr Burke wrote that he had asked park rangers not to kill the bear because he understood that she wanted to defend her cub.

He said the attack happened “at the wrong time and in the wrong place.” He had planned to go for an hour-long walk in the hope of spotting and photographing a great grey owl.

He said the attack occurred about 90 minutes after he left the parking lot. He tried to return as quickly as possible because he knew his wife had been waiting for him there earlier.

He said he had an “uncomfortable feeling” while driving through a dense, wooded valley. He followed safety instructions for the situation and made noise.

“I broke off branches, sang and talked loudly to myself,” he said.

He had pulled out his bear spray after seeing the cub, but the mother was already charging at him. Mr Burke said he heard the bear run away after biting the spray can.

After Mr. Burke moved away from the bear, he called his wife, who helped him figure out how to put tourniquets around his legs using the tools he had, including the straps of his backpack and camera bag.

He knew he had avoided a ruptured artery, the most dangerous and urgent type of bleeding.

“I lay alone in the woods, clutching my knife, leaning with my back against a tree, hoping the bear would not come back,” Burke wrote.

He also called 911, which was able to triangulate his location so a helicopter rescue could be conducted.

Mr Burke said he believed he was going to die and recorded a video telling those close to him that he loved them.

The first park rangers to reach Mr Burke gave him emergency medical attention before he was taken by helicopter to an ambulance. Mr Burke said he underwent surgery to clean and staple his wounds.

He said he was ill-prepared for a medical emergency because he had planned to take a short walk through the woods by the side of the road. He said he normally carries a first aid kit with him.

Mr Burke said his survival was largely due to his knowledge of what to do in the event of a bear attack and his knowledge of how to use bear spray.

People are advised to play dead with their hands behind their neck, as Mr. Burke did in the event of a grizzly bear attack. If a black bear attacks, do not play dead.