Bear Found Near Body Evades Euthanasia Attempts, Area Closed to Public

Despite saying on Wednesday that a bear found near a man’s remains in Great Smoky Mountains National Park had been euthanized, officials said Friday that efforts to locate and euthanize the bear are ongoing. Areas of the park remain closed for public safety.

30-year-old William Lee Hill, Jr., of Louisville, Tenn., along with friend Joshua Morgan, entered the park Friday, September 7, 2018, and set out separately to hunt for ginseng. Hill was never heard from again. Park officials were notified on Sunday that Hill was missing and a search for him began immediately.

Park rangers located Hill’s remains about .5 miles off Rich Mountain Road, between Townsend and Cades Cove, on Tuesday afternoon and there was evidence of wildlife scavenging. In a release, the park stated an adult male bear was seen in the area and exhibited aggressive behavior as rangers worked to recover Hill’s body. Wildlife biologists trapped the bear and recovered human DNA from it.

“While the cause of Mr. Hill’s death is unknown at this time, after gathering initial evidence, consulting with other wildlife professionals and careful consideration, we made the difficult decision to euthanize this bear out of concern for the safety of park visitors and local residents,” said Superintendent Cash on Wednesday. “This is always one of the hardest decisions a wildlife manager has to make, and is one that we did not take lightly. Over 2 million visitors come to the Cades Cove area annually and there are several residential areas very close to where we found Mr. Hill’s body. We could not take the risk of allowing this bear to approach or show aggression towards other people.”

However, park officials clarified on Friday that bear had not yet been euthanized. When wildlife biologists trapped the bear Tuesday night, they fitted it with a GPS tracking collar and then released it “so that it could be readily found again after park officials were able to review all available evidence and give careful consideration before making any decision.”

“Once the difficult decision was made to euthanize the bear out of concern for public safety, the process of euthanizing the animal has taken longer than anticipated,” officials said Friday. “Although wildlife managers know the bear is still in the area, it has thus far evaded efforts for them to get close enough for a clean shot to be taken to humanely euthanize it. The efforts are ongoing and Rich Mountain Road and the surrounding area remains closed.”

Hill’s cause of death has not been released.

It is illegal to harvest ginseng in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

UPDATE Sunday, September 16, 2018

At approximately 9:45 this morning, park officials fatally shot the adult male bear associated with the investigation into Mr. Hill’s death. The incident remains under investigation and no additional details are available at this time.

File Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service