Romanian authorities report bear attacks on tourists

BUCHAREST, Romania – Romanian authorities say brown bears have either attacked or startled several tourists in the Carpathian mountains.

The Prahova Ambulance service said a man camping in a forest in a tourist area received medical aid for a hand injury Wednesday after a bear, which was looking for food, attacked him as he slept.

Separately, a 39-year-old tourist camping in a forest sustained injuries to his arms Tuesday after a bear entered his tent.

Mountain rescue officials helped five tourists to safety Tuesday after they were chased by a bear with her cubs in the Prahova valley. The bears ripped apart their knapsacks.

Last week, two men were hospitalized with serious injuries after a bear attacked them in central Romania.

There are believed to be more than 6,000 brown bears in Romania.