MacGyver
03-07-2010, 10:58 AM
Manitowoc zoo black bear bites off woman's fingers
Police says alcohol a factor in incident
Gannett Wisconsin Media • March 7, 2010
MANITOWOC — An Asiatic black bear at Lincoln Park Zoo bit off all or parts of four fingers from the hand of a 47-year-old woman Friday morning after she went past barriers and was trying to feed the animal, a Manitowoc police captain said.
The woman, identified as Tracy Weiler of Manitowoc, was taken to a hospital in Green Bay, about 40 miles north of Manitowoc, and later transferred to Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, he said.
Her boyfriend, Lawrence Bosworth, 51, also of Manitowoc, tried to pry the bear's mouth off her hand and also was bitten, according to Luchterhand.
In his case, the bite did not result in the loss of fingers. He was taken to Aurora Medical Center in Two Rivers, two miles from the zoo.
Alcohol was a factor with both adults, according to a news release from Mayor Justin Nickels.
"The female was trying to feed the bear something out of a plastic bag," Capt. Scott Luchterhand.
He said she apparently went beyond the railing visitors are supposed to stay behind and put her hand through the fence.
Signs on the enclosure housing the bears say, "Stay away from fence" and "Do not feed animals."
A wooden viewing platform surrounded by railings is about 5 feet from the pen.
Weiler and Bosworth were at the zoo with Weiler's 3-year-old granddaughter, Luchterhand said. The girl was not harmed, according to the news release from the mayor's office.
The two bears, named Moe and Honey, were isolated in their pen.
"I'm not sure if we're going to be able to identify which bear it was," Luchterhand said.
"It appears, at this point, the bears will be saved," he said later, meaning they will not be euthanized.
That decision was made by the Manitowoc County Health Department in consultation with a veterinarian at the Communicable Disease Epidemiology Section of the Wisconsin Division of Public Health, said Mark Chatenka, environmental sanitarian at the health department.
Weiler and Bosworth agreed to undergo a series of preventative rabies vaccines, he said. The bears will be observed for a few days for signs of rabies.
State law requires wild animals to be euthanized if they bite someone unless the victim agrees to the vaccinations, Chatenka said.
Weiler and Bosworth will have to pay for the vaccines, but if the animals were put down, they would have had to pay for euthanizing the bears and sending their heads to the state laboratory for testing as well as for replacing the bears.
The zoo closed for the rest of the day after the 11:30 a.m. incident and reopened Saturday for regular zoo hours.
Police says alcohol a factor in incident
Gannett Wisconsin Media • March 7, 2010
MANITOWOC — An Asiatic black bear at Lincoln Park Zoo bit off all or parts of four fingers from the hand of a 47-year-old woman Friday morning after she went past barriers and was trying to feed the animal, a Manitowoc police captain said.
The woman, identified as Tracy Weiler of Manitowoc, was taken to a hospital in Green Bay, about 40 miles north of Manitowoc, and later transferred to Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, he said.
Her boyfriend, Lawrence Bosworth, 51, also of Manitowoc, tried to pry the bear's mouth off her hand and also was bitten, according to Luchterhand.
In his case, the bite did not result in the loss of fingers. He was taken to Aurora Medical Center in Two Rivers, two miles from the zoo.
Alcohol was a factor with both adults, according to a news release from Mayor Justin Nickels.
"The female was trying to feed the bear something out of a plastic bag," Capt. Scott Luchterhand.
He said she apparently went beyond the railing visitors are supposed to stay behind and put her hand through the fence.
Signs on the enclosure housing the bears say, "Stay away from fence" and "Do not feed animals."
A wooden viewing platform surrounded by railings is about 5 feet from the pen.
Weiler and Bosworth were at the zoo with Weiler's 3-year-old granddaughter, Luchterhand said. The girl was not harmed, according to the news release from the mayor's office.
The two bears, named Moe and Honey, were isolated in their pen.
"I'm not sure if we're going to be able to identify which bear it was," Luchterhand said.
"It appears, at this point, the bears will be saved," he said later, meaning they will not be euthanized.
That decision was made by the Manitowoc County Health Department in consultation with a veterinarian at the Communicable Disease Epidemiology Section of the Wisconsin Division of Public Health, said Mark Chatenka, environmental sanitarian at the health department.
Weiler and Bosworth agreed to undergo a series of preventative rabies vaccines, he said. The bears will be observed for a few days for signs of rabies.
State law requires wild animals to be euthanized if they bite someone unless the victim agrees to the vaccinations, Chatenka said.
Weiler and Bosworth will have to pay for the vaccines, but if the animals were put down, they would have had to pay for euthanizing the bears and sending their heads to the state laboratory for testing as well as for replacing the bears.
The zoo closed for the rest of the day after the 11:30 a.m. incident and reopened Saturday for regular zoo hours.