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A California couple in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., fought off a black bear that attacked them and their dogs using a hatchet and a water bottle, according to police.
Mammoth Lakes Police Department said it responded to a bear attack early Tuesday that injured two adult residents outside a home in the Old Mammoth area.
“The incident, which occurred around 6:00 a.m., involved an approximately 17-month-old black bear weighing about 70 pounds. Both individuals are expected to recover, and there is no ongoing threat to public safety in the area,” police said in a news release.
Upon investigating, police learned that a woman had heard her dogs barking and saw a black bear fighting with one of her dogs in front of her home.
“Another dog got out when the woman went outside and she attempted to stop the bear from fighting with her dogs. The bear then turned its attention toward her, biting and clawing her,” police added.
Once the man heard the commotion outside, he went to intervene and was “aggressively confronted by the bear,” according to police.
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The woman was able to grab a water bottle and use it to strike the bear until the man could get free, police said.
“Then the man retrieved a hatchet from within the house and used the blunt end of it to strike the bear multiple times, critically injuring the bear and stopping the confrontation,” police added in the news release.
The couple sustained minor injuries in the altercation.
Mammoth Lakes Police officers responded to the scene and were able to locate the bear.
Police turned the investigation over to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), which determined the bear to be a threat to public safety. Department staff humanely euthanized the animal.
“Incidents like this are extremely rare in Mammoth Lakes,” said police Chief Dan Casabian. “Bears almost always avoid humans and will flee when confronted. This type of aggressive behavior is highly unusual. We are grateful that the couple are expected to make full recoveries and appreciate the quick response of our officers, CDFW, Bishop Veterinarian Hospital, and Mammoth Hospital Staff.”
The Mammoth Lakes Police Department issued tips to reduce the risk of bear encounters and reminded residents and visitors that while bears are a common sight in the community, human-bear conflicts are uncommon.
To reduce the risk of encounters, police suggest never approaching or feeding bears, keeping garbage securely stored in bear-proof containers and not leaving pet food or bird feeders outside.
They also suggest making noise when hiking or walking in bear country, especially at dawn or dusk, and keeping dogs leashed and supervised.
Police suggest that if you encounter a bear, give it space and slowly back away, but do not run.
In April, the CDFW increased the number of bears that can be hunted to two per licence tags in a year in an attempt to regulate the rise in population.
Multiple bear incidents across the U.S. have made headlines in recent months.
In May, the body of a hiker reported missing in Montana’s Glacier National Park was discovered and authorities believe the death may be the park’s first fatal bear attack since 1998.
The National Park Service said that the hiker’s injuries “are consistent with those sustained by a bear encounter.”
“The victim was located about 2.5 miles up the Mt. Brown Trail approximately 50 feet off the trail in a densely wooded area with downed timber,” the National Park Service said in a press release.
The investigation into the hiker’s death remains ongoing and the section of the trail where the incident occurred had been temporarily closed.
The last human fatality caused by a bear in the United States occurred in 1998 in the Two Medicine Valley, while the last time a bear injured a human in the country was in August 2025, according to the National Park Service.
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