Police escorting students to school after B.C. bear attack that killed two

BELLA COOLA — The Nuxalk Nation in Bella Coola, B.C., says additional Mounties have been brought into the region and will be escorting students to school after a fatal bear attack killed a mother and daughter in the community.

It says in a post to social media that police will also be conducting more night patrols in the area and offering “voluntary rides” home for youth who are out at night.

The nation held a drum circle on Wednesday to honour Jenny Balcarras and her daughter, Selah Reed, whose bodies were found near a set of trials earlier this week.

A post to a fundraiser page set up by relative Mary Melissa Smith thanked the nation for setting up the tribute, while also highlighting the compassion and support shown by those in the community.

Authorities have imposed a voluntary 8 p.m. curfew in the region, about 1,000 kilometres north of Vancouver, as the search for the animal or animals behind the attack continues.

Bella Coola was also the site of an attack by a grizzly on a group of about 20 elementary school students and teachers last November, leaving an adult and three children badly injured.

The animal involved in that attack was never captured, and the BC Conservation Officer Service has said bear DNA from last year’s attack site would be compared with samples gathered in the wake of the latest attack.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2026.