Authorities sent 35 rangers to search for the animal after an attack in Ulaanbaatar’s Bayanzurkh district, as bear sightings rise across Mongolia.
A man in his 40s was killed and a woman in her 50s seriously injured on Wednesday night in Bayanzurkh, on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar. The woman escaped to seek help from neighbours and is being treated in hospital, city environment chief Munkhbayar M. said.
There have been 24 confirmed bear sightings in Ulaanbaatar so far this year, compared with two in 2018 and one in 2019. Across Mongolia, officials have received 754 reports from 11 provinces and the capital. About 80% involved cubs or females accompanied by cubs.
Thirty-five rangers are looking for the bear. Authorities are investigating the rise in encounters and have issued hunting permits in eight provinces. A bear examined after being killed in Khentii province had an empty stomach, an environment ministry official said. The government banned the gathering of nuts and berries in mountain areas in September.
Officials have also reported an increase in bear attacks elsewhere in Asia. Possible factors include food shortages and rural depopulation, but the circumstances of this attack remain under investigation.