A man from British Columbia has passed away several weeks after being severely injured in an encounter with a mother grizzly bear in the East Kootenay region. Joe Pendry, aged 63, was hunting elk near Fort Steele, northeast of Cranbrook, on October 2 when he came across the bear and her two cubs. His wife, Janice Pendry, confirmed that he died due to a blood clot.

Despite sustaining serious injuries during the initial attack, Joe’s background as a boxer and outdoor hunting guide contributed to his rare survival. Janice Pendry recounted that her husband shot the bear in the leg as it charged at him, but the bear persisted in attacking him, even having his head in its jaws at one point. In a desperate struggle for survival, Joe resorted to punching and biting the bear’s ear, resulting in severe injuries including torn lips and scalp, a lost finger, broken nose, cheekbones, arms, and ribs.

After managing to fend off the bear, Joe called for help and was airlifted to Kelowna General Hospital, where he underwent multiple surgeries on his face and other injured body parts. The British Columbia Conservation Officer Service later confirmed that a dead grizzly bear found in the area days after the incident was responsible for the attack, with the bear reportedly dying from sepsis.

According to the B.C. Environment Ministry, it was determined that the sow bear had two cubs with her during the encounter, although the cubs’ ages were unknown. Typically, bear cubs stay with their mother until their fourth summer, suggesting that they might have been old enough to survive on their own.

WildSafeBC reports that the Conservation Officer Service receives hundreds of calls annually related to grizzly bear incidents, emphasizing that while grizzly bear attacks are infrequent, they can sometimes result in fatalities. The organization also offers guidelines on how to prevent bear encounters on its website.