OSLO, Norway – A polar bear attacked a group of British students camping on a remote Arctic glacier as part of a high-end adventure holiday, killing a 17-year-old boy and injuring four other young people Friday before a trip member fatally shot the bear.
Two were hospitalized with severe injuries, according to the British Schools Exploring Society, the organizer of the trip.
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The attack took place on the Svalbard archipelago, which is home to about 2,400 people and 3,000 polar bears and attracts well-off and hardy tourists with stunning views of snow-covered mountains, fjords and glaciers.
The British Schools Exploring Society is affiliated with Britain’s Royal Geographic Society and has run expeditions for young people to remote and challenging corners of the globe for at least 75 years.
Expedition members were spending three to five weeks in the Arctic, and had each paid $3,300 to $4,900 to join the trip, designed to mix science experiments with adventure.
Participants were hunting for Arctic fossils and taking part in environmental experiments, including a project to install hydro and solar power systems. The group also was clearing beaches of tidal debris.
Before heading to the Arctic, youngsters had been urged to raise their fitness levels to cope with the challenging terrain and to prepare for a diet of freeze-dried meals.
The campers were in a group of 80 people, most of them between 16 and 23, the British Schools Exploring Society said. Many posed Wednesday for a final photo together before splitting into smaller groups to head out to more remote parts of the Arctic.
On Friday morning, some of the youths were camping on Spitsbergen Island, the largest in the Svalbard archipelago, and a place where researchers say there is not much food available for polar bears during the summer.
The bears, which can grow to around 10 feet and weigh up to 1,200 pounds, are the world’s largest non-aquatic predators. Although they don’t usually hunt humans, they can attack nearly anything if they are hungry.
With their broad paws and claws as long as 2 inches, polar bears are extremely dangerous and visitors to Svalbard are advised always to be armed, avoid confrontation and store smelly food securely.
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