At a bear breeding farm in Ulsan, an accident occurred in which a bear escaped from the kennel again following last year.
The farm, which is an unauthorized facility, continued to breed bears even though it was sentenced to a fine for a bear escape accident last year, and it was revealed that the related authorities neglected to find a sharp countermeasure.
According to the Ulsan Fire Headquarters, at around 9:37 pm yesterday (8th), a report that "parents have not been contacted for several hours" came through the Seoul 119 situation room.
Upon receiving the report, the fire brigade dispatched to a bear breeding farm in Beomseo-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan-si, where the parents of the reporter are believed to be located, and confirmed that three black bears were wandering around the kennel.
At the entrance to the breeding farm, a man and a woman in their 60s, a farm manager and the parents of the reporter, were found dead.
Judging from the trauma identified on the body, it was likely that he had been attacked by a bear.
The fire department, along with the police and the Ulju County Capture Team, made up of firefighters, set out to capture the bear.
In this regard, at 11:25 pm, Ulju-gun also sent a safety guide text saying, "One was killed and two were being captured, so nearby residents should refrain from going out."
The fire brigade and the Ulju-gun capture team killed all three bears around 11:33 pm, and continued the search in preparation for the possibility of additional escaped objects.
As a result of the investigation, it was confirmed that 1 out of 4 breeding bears died of illness about 2 months ago and only 3 were bred, and the search was stopped accordingly.
In this farm where unfortunate damage occurred, there was an accident that a bear escaped last year.
On the morning of May 19 last year, an escaped bear was found by a resident while wandering around a nearby vegetable garden.
Fortunately, the bear did not show any aggression at the time, and was captured relatively easily with a tranquilizer gun.
Afterwards, an investigation by the relevant agency revealed that the farm had bred black bears, a natural monument and an internationally endangered species, without permission to register a breeding facility from the Ministry of Environment, and was sentenced to a fine of 3 million won in the first trial.
The problem is that even after this disposition, there was no effective plan to restrain bear breeding.
Breeding bears are private property, so they must be confiscated and managed separately, but there is no facility in Korea to take care of confiscated bears yet.
At least, the Ministry of Environment is currently promoting a project to install a breeding bear shelter in Gurye, South Jeolla Province, by 2024 to end bear breeding.
An official from the Nakdong River Basin Environmental Office said, "There are realistic limitations, such as that breeding bears, which are personal property, cannot be killed, and there is no place to confiscate and send them." I hope it will be," he said.
(Photo = Provided by Ulju-gun, Yonhap News)