Polar Bear Attack (2011)

S

Sweet Shooter

New member
This is an interesting, albeit sad story of an attempt to save the life of a schoolboy on an expedition. I'm not trying to point fingers but the trust placed in the "guide" in this instance was betrayed. There is no way that a trained guide would not know how a K98 worked. It appears these "Team Leaders" were not qualified. And why? I'll leave that to you. I even question the use of a K98.
-SS-
 
I see no references to Mr. Reid being a 'guide' or even being referred to as any kind of 'guide'. The only title he is given in half a dozen articles that I read, was that of "Group Leader". And there's no indication that he had ANY previous experience with firearms.


I can name at least 100 people that own firearms and shoot regularly, but would have no idea what to do, if I handed them a Mauser (or a Springfield) with the safety in the On-Locked or On-Unlocked position. They have no experience with anything similar, and would be completely bumfuzzled by the lack of intuitive operation.

Go to someone with even less experience, in a high stress situation, and they're likely to give up on the rifle or use it as a club.

Have you ever seen the bewildered, confused look in someone's eye, as they keep flipping the magazine cutoff on, and off, trying to figure out why the safety won't turn off on a 1903 Springfield or Krag rifle? That's the level of familiarity that I expect of the average person who is handed a mil-surp of that era.
 
Interesting story. I saw a show on Polar bear attacks in that area. In one, the tourist party landed on an island to see the bears and one attacked. The guide had a 22 revolver and it did nothing. IIRC, he got killed.

In another, when you hiked - you had the option of renting a rifle. Three hikers chose not to as they loved nature, etc. A bear attacked and two were killed. One survived by jumping off a cliff. Hit the scree and survived but was badly hurt.

The safety issue is an interesting human factor one.
 
@FrankenMauser, semantics/etiology. He was in charge of a busload of schoolkids. He was trusted in charge of minors. My point is he had no business being the "one with the gun".
-SS-
 
Should follow the Israeli model. One teacher is armed and knows how to use the gun. The "leader" didn't know the firearm he was carrying.
 
Glenn, I think the well armed guy with the .22 lost his wife to the bear, He was a very educated and mentally superior fellow as I recall from his condescending yet clueless interview. :confused: It is sad that others have to pay for "their" self-confidence.. Kinda like Treadwells girlfriend. Well.....Treadwell too.
 
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There have also been a fair amount of knowledgeable folks with firearms who have reacted poorly or incorrectly in times of stress and failed to chamber a round, release the safety, fire wildly, short stroking a pump shotgun, poor handloads tying up an action, etc. etc. That particular story is simply a sad one that a young person lost his life, but very similar in result to ones that can happen in LE, Military, and other life/death situations.
 
I remember this incident being on the news, didn't get as many details as in the article. The Party should have had at least one professional guide with a rifle like a Winchester 45 magnum. Teachers are supposed to be educated individuals they should have demanded proper protection.
 
I would like to say in the teachers defense. Few of us civilians in the UK have a clue about firearms. I doubt the man with the gun being British had any experience with firearms at all.
 
Teachers are supposed to be educated individuals they should have demanded proper protection.
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I am sure the teacher was educated. Very well educated people don't necessarily make all the right decisions all the time just like trained professionals don't either. Along similar lines, it never ceases to astound me when people who are purportedly trained in self defense express the sentiment that they didn't think an attack would happen to them.

As noted in the following, there were a lot of things wrong on this trip. Proper use of a firearm was just one failure.
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...le-inquest-mistakes-equipment-failures-report
 
This is a story about a guy who didn't know how to use the antique rifle he happened to be carrying. Sad. But, not really shocking or even surprising.
 
mikthestick said:
I would like to say in the teachers defense. Few of us civilians in the UK have a clue about firearms. I doubt the man with the gun being British had any experience with firearms at all.
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This was my initial thought. There is nothing in the article to suggest that Mr. Reid was in any way a "guide," let alone a professional guide. My guess is that he is (or was) a teacher at the school. Considering that the group was from England, I think it's remarkable that anyone even had a firearm. That said, I'm sure Mr. Reid wasn't exactly proficient with a Mauser. Under stress, it would be very easy for someone not overly skilled with firearms to mess up the operation of the safety.

Heck, that's one of the reasons many trainers don't recommend 1911s to rookies. The thought is that, if attacked, a newby might forget to disengage the thumb safety, or fumble and miss it.
 
There was a guy from a local town here in Maine who took a trip up to the tundra in Canada and ended up almost mauled to death by a polar bear. As memory serves his camp was protected by a portable electric fence.

He lived, and took the high road. Said he knew the risks going in and that the bear was just doing what came natural when it found people in a tent. I tent out in black bear country all the time, but polar bears...
 
This is a story about a guy who didn't know how to use the antique rifle he happened to be carrying. Sad. But, not really shocking or even surprising.
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Not so much the rifle he happened to be carrying, but the expedition's rifle that he grabbed after being awakened during the attack, though he apparently had inadequate training on the rifle as per the inquiry.

He was in charge of a busload of schoolkids. He was trusted in charge of minors.
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Not exactly. There were minors, but there were adult-aged participants (other than the ones in charge) as well.

A total of 80 16 to 23 year-olds were on the expedition, organised by the BSES
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...h-of-Eton-schoolboy-mauled-by-polar-bear.html

Again, the issue isn't just with the firearm. The firearm should have been a last resort feature in this case, but there was no bear watch posted, the trip wire system was missing parts, jury-rigged, and not all trip wires meant to be had were able to be deployed. Each of the participants was supposed to have pen flares and they did not. The rifle had been inadequately stored, maintained, and folks were not given much training on its operation. Tents were not set up in a manner conducive for being in polar bear territory.

Based on what I have read, I am surprised food wasn't being stored inappropriately as well.
 
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