Shane McMahon's Ass
11-10-2009, 08:52 PM
A teenager has been dramatically rescued after becoming trapped on an ice floe with three polar bears.
The Canadian, named locally as Jupi Nakoolak, was discovered drifting in the Arctic sea after he had embarked on a hunting expedition with his 67-year-old uncle.
It is understood they got into trouble when one of their snowmobiles broke down.
The 17-year-old Inuit set off to find help but became stranded when the ice floe broke away and drifted loose, according to rescue teams.
The teen, who was armed with a rifle, encountered three bears - an adult and two older cubs - on the same large ice pan.
As overnight temperatures plummeted to -20C the teenager was forced to shoot the mother polar bear in self-defence, orphaning her youngsters.
Ed Zebedee, director of the Government of Nunavut's protection services branch, said: "He did have to shoot the polar bear to protect himself.
"There were two other bears on the ice pan but they stayed away from him so he didn't shoot at them at all."
The two cubs remained with the adult carcass and the teen managed to position himself as far away as he could from the remaining animals.
A rescue mission was launched when the men were reported missing.
The uncle was found near the snowmobiles while the younger man was spotted from air although rescuers lost sight of him as night fell on Sunday.
They caught sight of him again yesterday morning about four miles from the shore – by that time the floe had drifted at least 30 miles in the Arctic Ocean.
Paratroopers jumped onto the ice from a Hercules transport plane to save him.
Michael Young of the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre at a Canadian army base in Ontario said:"This young man had quite a journey.
It was cold and dark, and there were apparently a couple of polar bears on the ice floe with him too."
The teenager is being treated for mild hypothermia and frostbite in the small town of Coral Harbour, on Hudson Bay.
The Canadian, named locally as Jupi Nakoolak, was discovered drifting in the Arctic sea after he had embarked on a hunting expedition with his 67-year-old uncle.
It is understood they got into trouble when one of their snowmobiles broke down.
The 17-year-old Inuit set off to find help but became stranded when the ice floe broke away and drifted loose, according to rescue teams.
The teen, who was armed with a rifle, encountered three bears - an adult and two older cubs - on the same large ice pan.
As overnight temperatures plummeted to -20C the teenager was forced to shoot the mother polar bear in self-defence, orphaning her youngsters.
Ed Zebedee, director of the Government of Nunavut's protection services branch, said: "He did have to shoot the polar bear to protect himself.
"There were two other bears on the ice pan but they stayed away from him so he didn't shoot at them at all."
The two cubs remained with the adult carcass and the teen managed to position himself as far away as he could from the remaining animals.
A rescue mission was launched when the men were reported missing.
The uncle was found near the snowmobiles while the younger man was spotted from air although rescuers lost sight of him as night fell on Sunday.
They caught sight of him again yesterday morning about four miles from the shore – by that time the floe had drifted at least 30 miles in the Arctic Ocean.
Paratroopers jumped onto the ice from a Hercules transport plane to save him.
Michael Young of the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre at a Canadian army base in Ontario said:"This young man had quite a journey.
It was cold and dark, and there were apparently a couple of polar bears on the ice floe with him too."
The teenager is being treated for mild hypothermia and frostbite in the small town of Coral Harbour, on Hudson Bay.