Hunter accidentally shot himself while fending off a bear

August 23, 2024 Gloria Shaw

A hunter’s close encounter with a brown bear on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska took a terrifying turn when he accidentally shot himself in the leg while fending off the attacking animal.

Despite his injuries, the hunter, 32-year-old Tyler Johnson remained remarkably calm, even recording a video recounting the ordeal while waiting for rescue.

The incident occurred on Saturday when Johnson and his father, Chris, were hiking off-trail. According to Johnson, they accidentally startled the bear, which then charged at them.

“It came charging at my dad,” Johnson explained in the video. “He made some noise, and then it went straight to me.”

As the bear threw Johnson to the ground and bit his leg, he managed to grab his 10mm pistol and began firing at the animal. In the process, he accidentally shot himself. “I did shoot myself when I was falling backwards…but it went straight through my leg,” Johnson said, showing the camera a close-up of his wound, which was wrapped with a makeshift tourniquet.

After the attack, Johnson and his father found themselves sitting beside the dead bear, waiting for emergency troopers to arrive in response to their SOS call.

Despite the situation, Johnson maintained a surprising level of composure, even commenting on the “beautiful day” as he looked up at the clear sky, seemingly unfazed by the bloodied tourniquet on his leg.

Later, Johnson revealed that the adrenaline from the attack initially numbed him from feeling any pain. When the shock eventually subsided, he used breathing exercises, music, and distraction techniques—such as telling his father a story about a previous hunting experience—to manage the pain.

“It’s those little things that try to help you through a hard moment,” Johnson said. He added that being with his father, an Alaska State Trooper with experience in bear encounters, provided comfort during the ordeal.

The Alaska Department of Public Safety confirmed that Johnson was safely evacuated to a hospital in Anchorage, where he avoided surgery and required only bandages and IV antibiotics to prevent infection. Johnson credited his father with helping him avoid more severe injuries.

Investigators later discovered a cub near the scene of the attack, which likely explains the bear’s aggressive behavior. Johnson recalled the bear’s swift and intentional charge, noting that when a bear stops, it’s usually because “it’s dead, or it’s about to die.”