Nowhere Is Safe, Not Even Walkways or Restrooms... Japan Trembles Amid Growing 'Bear Fear' in Daily Life

Bear Attacks on Seniors in Ishikawa and Nara in a Single Day
Bear-Related Deaths Reach Record 13 Last Year
Emergency Killing Law and Self-Defense Forces Deployed, But Measures Remain Insufficient

In Japan, bears are increasingly encroaching on residential areas, resulting in a series of injuries to residents. Accidents involving residents being harmed by bears are occurring in everyday spaces such as morning walking paths or home yard restrooms, but authorities have yet to provide adequate countermeasures, which is heightening public anxiety.

On the 2nd, a bear attacked a person on the right and then ran away from a building in Fukushima, Japan. Photo by AP Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News on June 17, citing the Yomiuri Shimbun and other sources, "At around 6:00 a.m. that day, an elderly man in his 80s was attacked by a bear while walking near farmland in a residential area of Komatsu, Ishikawa Prefecture." The man, who sustained injuries to his head and face, was taken to a hospital, but his life is reportedly not in danger. Because the accident occurred close to residential neighborhoods, authorities canceled all outdoor classes, including physical education, at two elementary and middle schools within a 2-kilometer radius. Police and local governments have stepped up patrols and urged residents to remain vigilant.

Earlier the same day, at around 4:40 a.m., in a mountain village in Shimokitayama, Nara Prefecture, a man in his 60s suffered severe injuries to his head and face after being bitten by a bear. It is reported that the man encountered a bear about 150 centimeters long as he exited an outdoor restroom on his residential property and was attacked. Local government officials and a regional hunting group launched a large-scale search after the incident was reported, but they were unable to capture the bear.

Such incidents have been rising sharply in Japan recently. According to the Ministry of the Environment, the number of fatalities from bear attacks last year reached 13—more than double the previous record of six in 2023—marking the worst figures since statistics have been kept. During the same period, the number of injured reached 238.

Experts cite several factors: reduced food sources such as acorns and beech nuts due to climate change, and the breakdown of boundaries between people and bears as a result of rural depopulation and an aging population. The estimated number of bears in Japan has risen from around 15,000 in 2012 to 54,000 this year.

The Japanese government amended the Wildlife Protection and Management Act, which has been in effect since September last year, allowing mayors of municipalities to order the "emergency killing" of bears in residential areas if deemed necessary. In November last year, the Self-Defense Forces were deployed to Akita Prefecture in the north, where damage was concentrated. However, due to legal restrictions, the Self-Defense Forces were only permitted to support activities such as setting up capture traps, transporting hunters, and handling carcasses, without using firearms. At that time, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi stated, "The deployment of the Self-Defense Forces is intended to protect the daily lives of residents," but emphasized, "The primary mission of the Self-Defense Forces is national defense," and clarified that, "We cannot provide unlimited support for bear countermeasures."

Even the hunting population has declined and aged, dropping from about 518,000 in 1975 to around 218,000 in 2020, making it difficult to devise effective countermeasures. Naoki Onishi, head of the Animal Ecology and Genetics Team at the Tohoku Branch of the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, described last fall's situation as "disaster-level," and commented, "Now that we are living in an era where people and bears coexist in close proximity, people have no other choice but to live with caution."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.