iStockphoto
Japan is currently dealing with an unprecedented rise in the number of bear attacks on humans due to a variety of factors that have led to a spike in those encounters. Now, the already concerning tally has risen yet again after two people were injured (and some avocados were ruined) when one of the animals made its way into a grocery store.
The islands that comprise the nation of Japan are home to over 55,000 bears. The estimated 44,000 Japanese black bears that roam the islands of Honshu and Shikoku are responsible for the bulk of that number, while Hokkaido, the northernmost segment of the country’s mainland, boasts close to 12,000 Ussuri brown bears.
Those bears have been responsible for a concerning rise in attacks on people in recent years.
The animals, which neared the brink of extinction in the country the 1980s due to overhunting, have become increasingly comfortable with entering “human territory” as an aging population has led to some towns emptying out, and experts said climate change that’s impacted their natural food sources has led to bears getting more aggressive in their search for a meal.
A grocery store is obviously a pretty good place to track down some food, and two people at a supermarket fell victim to a bear that decided to wander into it.
Two people were attacked by a bear that wreaked havoc at a grocery store in Japan
According to CBS News, there were between 30 and 40 people shopping at a grocery store in the city of Numata (located in the Gunma prefecture) on Tuesday night when they found themselves sharing the space with a black bear that strolled through the front door.
Local officials say two men (aged 76 and 69) were injured in an incident where one of them was attacked by the bear in the parking lot and the other was targeted once it made its way inside the store.
A representative for the supermarket said the bear became agitated once it realized it had no idea how to leave after walking inside, noting:
“It entered from the main entrance and stayed inside for roughly four minutes. It almost climbed onto the fish case and damaged glass. In the fruits section, it knocked over a pile of avocados and stamped on them.”
The outlet notes that was just the latest in a string of attacks that recently unfolded in Japan. A farmer in Iwate suffered minor injuries after being clawed by one on the same day, while a tourist from Spain suffered a similar fate while standing at a bus stop in Shirakawa.
Seven people have been killed by bears in Japana during the ongoing fiscal year (a record in the country), and the attacks may only continue to rise as the bears get increasingly aggressive as they gear up for hibernation.