Man survives ‘surprise attack’ by 2 grizzlies at Grand Teton National Park

A Massachusetts man survived what officials are calling a “surprise attack” by two grizzlies on Sunday at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, authorities said.

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According to Jeremy Barnum, Grand Teton’s chief of staff, the 35-year-old man, who has not been identified, was in stable condition, the Jackson Hole News & Guide reported.

The man had a “surprise encounter” with two grizzlies in the Signal Mountain Area of the park Sunday afternoon, according to the Cowboy State Daily. According to a news release from the National Park Service, one of the bears attacked the victim, inflicting serious injuries.

“Grand Teton National Park rangers and Teton County Search and Rescue personnel responded to the scene to provide emergency medical care and airlifted the patient via helicopter to an awaiting ambulance where he was transported to St. John’s Hospital,” Barnum said in an email to the Cowboy State Daily.

Grizzly bears are typically territorial and solitary animals, according to the News & Guide. It was unclear why the two animals were together at the time of the attack.

The Signal Mountain Summit Road and Signal Mountain Trail were closed as a result of the attack, according to KBZK-TV.

Bear attacks in Teton County are rare, the News & Guide reported. In 2007, a grizzly attacked a visitor in Grand Teton National Park, and six years later a grizzly attacked a man outside his home in Tetonia, according to the newspaper. In 2022, a black bear pushed a camper out of a hammock in Teton Canyon.

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