A massive black bear, weighing close to 300 pounds, mauled to death an 89-year-old Florida man and his faithful dog — the first deadly attack in Sunshine State history.
Robert Markel’s granddaughter called 911 on the morning of May 5, after seeing a male bear killing her dad’s dog right outside his camper, situated on her property in Jerome — about 70 miles south of Fort Myers.
The dog was dead by the time Collier County Sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene, according to the Naples Daily News.
State Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission investigators found evidence of “a physical encounter between a bear and a person near the residence” and also indications that a bear had “entered the residence itself.”
But Markel was nowhere to be found.
It wouldn’t be long before his remains were located 100 yards from the camper.
In their search for the animal guilty of the horrific attack, FWC officials killed three bears during and found a 263-pound male black bear containing partial remains from the man, the Miami Herald reported.
Some of the killer bear’s DNA was discovered inside the camper and on the dog’s corpse by FWC officials, according to the outlet.
“The exact sequence of events remains unclear,” said officials, who also believe the attacks didn’t occur simultaneously.
Wildlife officials are still investigating what led to the fatal encounter.
The fatal mauling marked the first time in Florida recorded history that a black bear has killed a human, although humans have previously been attacked and injured.
“The FWC receives an average of 6,300 bear-related calls annually and has documented 42 prior incidents where wild black bears have made physical contact with people since the 1970s, when comprehensive records began being kept,” authorities explained.
The May 5 incident marks the second black bear attack on a human in Florida this year.
A female black bear attacked a person on Feb. 15 in Silver Springs.
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