A tragic incident unfolded in the Fraktos forest area of Drama, where one hiker was found deceased in a ravine following a bear attack.
His companion, who witnessed the event, recounted the harrowing details on camera, stating that the bear charged towards them.
“My friend Christos and I went for a day trip to explore the forest and found an aircraft. On our way back, he wanted to take a look at the view from a peak. I stayed back 10 meters and heard him shout, ‘Dimitri, come see a bear!’” described the grieving friend.
He recounted how he approached the cliff, thinking the bear was about 100 meters away. Then he heard Christos call out again, “Dimitri, come see a bear.”
“I moved closer between some fir trees and heard some commotion. The bear was only six or seven meters from Chris. It attacked, took off, and then charged at me, appearing just two or three meters away. I was frozen in fear. My dog jumped in front of me, which startled me momentarily before she fought back. I managed to get out the pepper spray and sprayed it, causing the bear to flee,” he recounted.
According to him, the bear then turned towards his friend and pushed him off the cliff, as if it didn’t see him as a threat. “I think it just knocked him down,” he added.
“It was a massive bear—definitely the largest I’ve ever seen. I believe it was an adult male,” he noted.
Describing the attack further, he recalled, “When it happened, I heard an ‘oh, oh, oh’. The first time Chris fell, it was followed by a ‘ahh’; he fell again with another ‘ahh’, and then I heard nothing else. After that, I don’t remember what happened and have no recollection of how the bear left.”
“I sought refuge among the fir trees, thinking it would be safer. I tried calling out for Chris, hoping for a response, but got nothing. I dialed emergency numbers for help, providing coordinates, and reached out to friends because the terrain was rough and treacherous,” he recalled.
Victim Identification
The climber who fell from the cliff was located unconscious shortly before 9 a.m. on Monday. Emergency medical staff confirmed his death shortly after he was retrieved.
Earlier, a Super Puma helicopter managed to reach the location where the climber had been brought down by EMAK personnel.
The climber was taken by ambulance to the military airport in Chrysoupoli before being transferred to Kavala Hospital.
In total, 37 firefighters from EMAK were involved in the operation to locate and recover the climber.
On Monday, rescuers found the climber’s friend alive at the incident scene.
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