A Grizzly bear searches for food as he fishes in Khutze Inlet near Princess Royal Island, B.C., Thursday, Sept, 19, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
A Grizzly bear searches for food as he fishes in Khutze Inlet near Princess Royal Island, B.C., Thursday, Sept, 19, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
A grizzly bear attack on a group of elementary school students in Bella Coola, B.C., on Thursday is the latest in a series of recent encounters with the animals in British Columbia. Several people have been badly injured and at least one person has died.
Here is a list of attacks in B.C. this year:Â
July 4: A man is flown to hospital after being bitten and scratched by a grizzly in a remote location west of Fort Nelson. Conservation officers say there are no plans to hunt the animal, which had two cubs.
July 26: Two grizzly bears attack a couple riding electric bikes in Cranbrook, B.C. The man suffers significant injuries.
Sept. 30: Two people are charged with the killing of a grizzly bear in July on B.C.'s Texada Island. The bear had stalked people and harassed livestock in the weeks leading up to its death.
Oct. 2: Hunter Joe Pendry is attacked by a grizzly in the East Kootenay region. He shoots the bear and fights it off, but dies in hospital more than three weeks later. The bear is found dead.
Oct. 12: Two hikers are seriously injured when they are attacked by a grizzly in the McGregor Mountain area, northeast of Prince George. Conservation officers say the encounter happened when the hikers came across the sow with two cubs on a trail, and the attack was "defensive" in nature.
Nov. 20: A grizzly attacks a group of pupils and teachers while they were having lunch along a trail in Bella Coola. Two people suffer critical injuries, two are seriously hurt, and seven are treated at the scene.Â
This report by ºÃÉ«tvwas first published Nov. 21, 2025.