Bear Mauls Elderly Man in Arkansas — Marking State’s First Such Attack in 25 Years

A 72-year-old man is recovering after being critically injured in a bear attack in Arkansas earlier this week.

The man — identified as 72-year-old Vernon Patton — was attacked in the Mulberry Mountain area on Wednesday, Sept. 3, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) told news outlets News Nation, USA Today and ABC affiliate KHBS.

Patton had been working on a gravel road with his tractor near Mulberry Mountain when a 70-pound juvenile black bear attacked him, AGFC officials said, per the outlets. The man’s son reportedly witnessed the attack after checking on him and alerted authorities.

Patton was airlifted to Washington Regional in Fayetteville for surgery before being moved to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Medical Center in Little Rock as he recovered, according to News Nation and USA Today.

AGFC spokesperson Keith Stephens told USA Today that the man was found with “severe cuts and puncture wounds to his head and arms.” The man remained hospitalized as of Friday, Sept. 5, per the outlet.

Stephens described the incident as “highly unusual,” adding, “there have been no documented bear attacks on humans in Arkansas in at least 25 years.”

The AGFC did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on the incident.

As for the bear, two wardens with AGFC responded to the scene and found the animal still in the area. They subsequently killed the animal due to public safety and in order to examine the animal’s body to potentially figure out why the attack may have occurred, per USA Today.

The AGFC said a necropsy would be performed on the bear’s carcass to check whether the bear had rabies, a fatal viral disease that affects the central nervous system that can be transmitted to humans, or distemper, a highly contagious and often fatal viral disease that only affects animals. 

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Stephens told News Nation that if a person encounters a black bear, they should slowly back away without running, and if the bear still doesn’t leave, make loud noises and attempt to appear larger by widening their stance.

The National Park Service also recommends that if a person is attacked by a black bear, they should “try to escape to a secure place such as a car or building” or if that is not possible, “try to fight back using any object available.”