Tenkasi (Tamil Nadu): Three people were left seriously injured after being attacked by a bear in Tenkasi district of Tamil Nadu. The attack happened on Sunday morning in the forest area near Kadayam where bears attack domestic animals occasionally but stay clear of humans.
A viral video of the attack shows the bear pouncing on a man and tearing apart his face as he struggles for his life. The man who was first attacked was identified as Vaikundamani.
"Vaikundamani is a spice trader and traveling on a two-wheeler. He was crossing the forest area when he was attacked on November 6. The bear pounced on him and began attacking him. Upon hearing the screams of Vaikundamani, villagers including his brothers Sailappan and Nagendran rushed to rescue him," a forest department official said.
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As Sailappan and Nagendran tried to rescue Vaikundamani, the bear attacked them as well leaving them critically injured. Soon more villagers reached the spot and the bear fled from the spot. The injured trio was sent to Tirunelveli government hospital for treatment. The incident caused a stir in the village. Sailappan and Nagendran both have disfigured faces and have been grafted with plastic surgery.
The forest department tracked and anesthetized the bear. The animal was later released in the Chengal Theri forest area under the Kalakad forest reserve. However, the bear suddenly died on Tuesday. An autopsy has been conducted by doctors to determine the cause of the bear's death. According to forest department officials, the bear was a 10-year-old female who might have lost her cubs.
