A black bear was mistakenly euthanized by wildlife officials on the Appalachian Trail after a hiker was bitten on the leg.
On the night of May 10, Las Vegan Bradley Veeder was sleeping his tent near the Spence Field Backcountry Shelter, located within the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, N.C.
A black bear tore through Veeder’s tent and bit down on the 49-year-old’s lower leg.
Although the bear scampered away before Veeder or other campers could glimpse it, the bear later returned to ransack the tent (Veeder had taken shelter in a nearby hut by then).
Veeder followed the appropriate protocol, stringing up his food on cables, reported the Washington Post.
A black bear is seen at the Maine Willdlife Park in New Gloucester, Maine, on July 25, 2014. AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File
