US woman chased and attacked by bear while comet-watching
A woman was attcked by a bear while comet-watching with her husband in New Mexico (File photo) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via AP, File
An American woman has been attacked by a bear while comet-watching with her husband.
The woman was seriously injured when she was chased and attacked by the animal on the deck of a northern New Mexico ski area lodge, authorities said.
The bear came within metres of the couple on Friday night and then began chasing the woman before attacking her in the parking lot of the ski area on the outskirts of Los Alamos, the state Game and Fish Department said in a statement.
The woman was hospitalised for treatment of multiple injuries, including several broken bones, a collapsed lung, bite marks and scratches, the department said.
Los Alamos police officers who responded to an emergency call from the woman's husband shot and killed a bear eating trash in the vicinity, the department said.
A forensic laboratory will analyse DNA samples to determine whether the bear killed by police was the one involved in the attack, the department said.
Department spokesman Tristanna Bickford said bear encounters aren't uncommon in Los Alamos and that bears sometimes use drainages to enter the city from Valles Caldera National Preserve and other areas in search of food.
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