Shot 4 times, bear attacks hunter

State gaming authorities say it was the first time a downed animal attacked a sportsman.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- In what Pennsylvania game authorities said was an apparent first, a black bear bit and clawed a hunter who had just shot it four times.
Samuel H. Beauchamp, 47, said he was approaching the downed 320-pound bear in Rothrock State Forest in Huntingdon County on Monday, the first day of bear-hunting season, when it came after him.
Beauchamp, of Newville, had just shot the bear four times with a high-powered .444-caliber rifle and was within 15 feet when the bear attacked.
He turned to run, but the bear put a claw around his hip and bit him twice, once in each thigh, before dying.
"The bear wasn't attacking 100 percent. I mean really, it was dead on its feet when it came up. If it would have been 100 percent I wouldn't have been standing there," Beauchamp said Friday.
First such incident
Other hunters nearby heard a growl and came to Beauchamp's aid.
"It was shock at first. It's like he came alive, like 'boom.' I guess he growled, like the other people heard. That motivated me to turn around and start running away. It just reminded me of a gigantic black dog," he said.
Game commission bear biologist Mark Ternent said the attack was the first case known to state officials in which a bear in Pennsylvania has attacked a hunter who had just shot it and was attempting to recover it.
"Any downed game must be approached with caution. Hunters should stay back and monitor whether the bear is moving, or breathing, with the aid of binoculars or the scope on their rifle, before closing in," Ternent said.
Stuff of stories
Beauchamp, who missed two days of work from his job inspecting radar systems for the federal government, was released from the hospital after about two hours of treatment. The wounds -- one bite went down to the bone -- were left open to help combat possible infection, and he expects he will have some scarring.
"I didn't feel any pain after it happened. I'm a little sore now," he said Friday.
He retrieved the carcass, took it to a game-checking station and gave the skull to the Game Commission to have it checked for rabies.
The butchered bear meat is now stored in Beauchamp's freezer, and the hide is being tanned and mounted by a taxidermist.
As a Boy Scouts scoutmaster, Beauchamp figures he will be recounting the attack for the rest of his life.
"I like telling stories. This one will keep the boys interested," he said.
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