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Polar Bears are an endangered species and as such are protected in many of the countries they inhabit. However, 4 Finnish skiers felt forced to protect themselves when they shot a Polar Bear in the Svalbard region of Norway over the weekend reports NewsinEnglish.no.
The bear was subsequently wounded and later crawled into an ice cave. The skiers reported the incident via a satellite phone and authorities were dispatched to the area via helicopter. According to the skiers, they fired a warning shot into the air but when the bear returned and got closer to their location, they felt compelled to protect themselves by shooting the bear.
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After authorities arrived on the scene, they discovered the bear nearby in an icy formation. Once a clear shot was available, they put the bear out of its misery. The bear was a male and weighed nearly 256 pounds. Since the bear is protected in Norway, authorities are proceeding to investigate the incident.
While the situation is extremely unfortunate, the threat of polar bears is ever-present when traveling in the Svalbard area. In fact, skiers are required to be armed while traveling in the area due to the threat posed by Polar Bears.
Find the entire NewsinEnglish.no article here: Skiers shot polar bear on Svalbard