Witnesses describe desperate attempt to free 10-year-old from bear attack

Conservation officers say they have taken a black bear cub involved in an attack on a 10-year-old girl inCoquitlam to a rehabilitation centre.

Officers killedits mother on Saturday after the animal bit and dragged the victim near a popular hiking trail at Shaughnessy Street and Lincoln Avenue where the trail along the Coquitlam River leads to a wilderness area.

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Meanwhile witnesses described a desperate fight to try and save the victim.

"I heard shouting and yelling and Iran out with some other people and saw the bear dragging her across the trail there into the woods and thenpeople rushed it and attacked it," said Daniel Joplin.

"It pulled her into the bush and was trying to pull her further and people were whacking its head and eventually it let go but tried to bite again."

The girl was eventually rescued and taken to hospital with critical injuries. Her condition on Sunday was described as serious.

"It was a very unfortunate situation where two people encountered a mother bear with her cub and you know there was an attack andso just extremely bad luck," said Murray Smith, a Conservation office inspector.

He said that the service has determined that the two bears had not gotten into garbage at the site, so the cub can be rehabilitated and released into the wild, most likely, next spring.

The mother, though, was killed because the animal would not leave the area despite several humans being around.

Now investigators are hoping the girl and her family can help provide details into the investigation into what happened.

Meanwhile politicians in the area are reminding people to not leave garbage or bear attractants like fruit lying around otherwise they couldface stifffines.

"We just really want to get the message out that we can live amongst bears in our community safe and respectfully," saidTeri Towner, the acting mayor of Coquitlam.