A Florida man disappeared and was killed by a bear while hiking in Montana’s Glacier National Park in what authorities believe is the first bear attack in the park since 1998.
The body of the hiker, identified as Anthony Pollio, 33, of Davie, Florida, has been recovered, the National Park Service said in a May 9 news release. Pollio was last heard from on May 3, when he relayed plans to hike to the Mount Brown Fire Lookout.
According to the National Park Service, his last known message was sent around 8:20 pm local time on May 3, and the park was notified of his disappearance on the afternoon of May 4.
The National Park Service said park rangers focused their search efforts on the Brown Mountain and Snyder Lake areas and adjacent trail corridors. Air resources and local rescue crews also assisted in the search.
According to the National Park Service, at about 12 noon local time on May 6, search and rescue personnel discovered Pollio’s body in a “densely wooded, downed area” about 50 feet away from the Brown Mountain Trail. Crews also found some of Pollio’s personal belongings about 2.5 miles from the trailhead.
At the time of the discovery, the National Park Service said Pollio’s injuries were consistent “with those sustained by a bear encounter.”
“The series of events leading up to this black bear encounter remain under investigation; however, evidence suggests this was an unexpected encounter,” the National Park Service said in a May 9 news release.
The National Park Service noted that a section of the trail where the incident occurred remains temporarily closed while authorities investigate, and reminded park visitors not to enter closed trails. The agency said park staff are working to “determine next steps based on site assessments and monitoring of wildlife behavior.”
Bear incident in Glacier National Park
Fatal encounters with bears are uncommon in Glacier National Park, located in northwestern Montana near the Canadian-U.S. border. The National Park Service said the last bear attack in the park occurred in 1998 in the Two Medicine Area.
National Park Service records show that on May 17, 1998, a solo hiker, Craig Dahl, was attacked on the Scenic Point Trail in Two Medicine Valley. After Dahl’s death, wildlife authorities killed a mother bear and two cubs.
According to National Park Service records, there have been 10 confirmed grizzly bear-related deaths since the park was established, from 1967 to 1998.
The last time a bear mauled a human in Glacier National Park was in August 2025, the National Park Service said. A 34-year-old woman was bitten by a “brown bear” while hiking with another person in the wilderness near Janet Lake, the agency said in a news release at the time.
According to the National Park Service, a mother bear and her two cubs charged at the woman and she ran off the trail. The female bear punched the woman, causing injuries to her arms and shoulders.
The encounter ended after her hiking partner used bear spray, causing the bear to immediately flee, the agency said. The hikers then used another group’s satellite communicator to contact and send a distress signal to park dispatchers, who found the woman in stable condition.
“No action will be taken against the bear at this time. The encounter was an accident for a sow and two cubs, with the sow reacting defensively. The area of ​​the trail where the hiking group was located is bounded by a lake and dense brush from which the bear emerged,” the agency said in a news release. “The species of the bear cannot be determined.”
Other bear incidents in the United States
The same week as the fatal bear encounter in Glacier National Park, two hikers were injured in a bear attack in Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park, according to the National Park Service.
Two hikers were injured when they were attacked by “one or more bears” on a trail near Old Faithful Geyser on May 4, the agency said in a press release at the time. The agency said in a May 7 update that a 15-year-old boy and a 28-year-old man were injured while hiking on the Mystic Falls Trail.
Authorities responded to the scene and provided aid, then transported the two hikers from the area by helicopter, according to the National Park Service. The incident remains under investigation, but the agency said park staff believe a female grizzly bear with two to three cubs was involved in the encounter.
“This is the first bear mauling incident in Yellowstone National Park in 2026,” the National Park Service said. “The last time a visitor was mauled by a bear in the park was in September 2025. The last human fatality caused by a bear occurred in 2015 in the Lake Village area of ​​the park.”
In April, two U.S. Army soldiers were injured when they encountered a brown bear while training at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, the 11th Airborne Division said in a news release. Two soldiers used bear spray and received medical treatment during the incident.
Authorities at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which spans parts of North Carolina and Tennessee, also reported a spike in encounters between ferocious bears and humans in April.
What to do if you encounter a bear
To stay safe in bear-infested areas, the National Park Service recommends that visitors:
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Always stay 100 yards away from a bear.
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Carry bear spray and know how to use it.
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Stay alert and watch for new tracks, droppings and feeding sites. Look for signs of digging, rolled rocks, torn logs and torn anthills.
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Hiking in groups of three or more.
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Do not hike at dawn, dusk, or at night, when bears are most active.
Written by: Julia Gomez and Phaedra Treson of USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hiker dies in rare bear attack in Glacier National Park