A college wrestler leapt on to a grizzly bear as it attacked his friend and “grabbed and yanked it hard by the ear” in a desperate attempt to save his life.
Kendall Cummings and Brady Lowry were antler hunting in the Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming with two Northwest College wrestling teammates on Saturday afternoon when they spotted bear faeces, the Cowboy State Daily reported.
The bear appeared “at close range in heavy cover” and attacked Mr Lowry in a “sudden, surprise encounter,” the Wyoming Game and Fish Department said in a statement.
Mr Cummings told Cowboy State Daily that after he managed to pull the bear off his friend, it reared and charged at him. He was knocked to the ground and mauled by the bear, telling the State Daily he felt no pain as the grizzly gripped his head in its jaws due to the adrenalin coursing through him.
“I could hear when his teeth would hit my skull, I could feel when he’d bite down on my bones and they’d kind of crunch,” Mr Cummings told the publication.
When the grizzly ceased its attack Mr Cummings said he called out to his friend to see if he was alright, and the bear “circled around and got on me again.”
He tried to fight back but was overpowered. The bear eventually got off him and left, and he remained silent for several minutes. He was able to get up and rejoin his friends soon afterwards.
After emergency responders reached the group, Mr Cummings was airlifted to St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, Montana, and Mr Lowry was taken to Cody Regional in Wyoming before he was flown to St. Vincent, according to KSL-TV.
Mr Cummings needed 60 staples for head wounds and underwent plastic surgery after receiving “major lacerations” to his face, arms and legs, the State Daily noted. Mr Lowry suffered a broken arm and cuts to his back, shoulders and legs.
Speaking from hospital, Mr Lowry told the outlet he owed his life to his friend’s heroic efforts.
“I can’t even express how grateful I am for him,” he told the State Daily. “I owe him everything.”
Northwest College president Lisa Watson said in a statement posted to Instagram that both men were expected to make a full recovery.
“I am so grateful for those who assisted these brave young men in the aftermath of this terrifying ordeal and that no lives were lost,” she said.
“It took quick thinking and no small amount of bravery for this to have ended without tragedy.”
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department said in a statement there had been an “abundance of bear activity” around the Shoshone, Clarks Fork and Greybull rivers.
It encouraged recreational hunters and hikers in the area to “use caution and be bear aware”.
“Game and Fish will continue to monitor bear activity in the area and work with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to make management decisions in the best interest of public safety,” wildlife supervisor Dan Smith said in the statement. “This is a sad and unfortunate situation, we wish both victims a full and speedy recovery.”
