Polar Bear Shot Dead After Attacking Cruise Ship Worker.

In a tragically unfortunate incident, it has been reported a Polar Bear has been shot dead by a cruise ship employee who was leading tourists off a ship last Saturday on an Arctic archipelago between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The incident occurred during a 10-day cruise on the MS Bremen, a member of the Hapag-Lloyd fleet.

Hapag-Lloyd Cruises said its ship was docked at Spitsbergen on Saturday when the bear attacked a guard hired to go on shore before passengers, to ensure there aren’t any polar bears in the area. The incident happened when the four-person Polar Bear guard team, who are always on board for these expedition cruises as required by law, prepared for a shore leave.

The guard suffered non-life-threatening head injuries in the attack and was airlifted out by helicopter to the town of Longyearbyen on Spitsbergen island where he received further treatment. The company said in a statement: ‘There had to be an intervention for reasons of self-defence and to protect the life of the attacked person, we are extremely sorry that this incident has happened.’

Online reaction to the episode has been highly critical. British actor-comedian Ricky Gervais tweeted ‘Let’s get too close to a Polar Bear in its natural environment and then kill it if it gets too close,’ Morons.’

Wildlife conservationist Jeff Corwin has a more balanced view, ‘It’s incredibly tragic, when you are in this ecosystem as a tourist, as an explorer or as a scientist, you have the responsibility to follow the protocols to ensure that you stay safe and that you don’t interfere with the wild behavior of polar bears.’

Genealogist Jane Roberts on Twitter suggested ‘Maybe cruise sightseeing tours shouldn’t take place, then Polar Bear guards wouldn’t be needed to protect gawking tourists, and Polar Bears would be left in peace and not shot dead merely to satisfy a photo opportunity.’

The Norwegian Polar Institute says ‘Do remember that it is prohibited to follow, seek out or lure Polar Bears. This great predator has little respect for humans and dangerous situations can easily arise if people get too close.’

So there you have it, a sorry episode whichever way you look at it. The obvious questions are raised, should we leave the natural habitat alone or are we obliged to witness the beauty that surrounds us at any cost? Should tourism as a whole be more respectful to the planet in general?

Whether you agree with Ricky Gervais or not I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Bye for now.