A woman was killed in her sleep by a grizzly while camping in Montana after chasing it away just an hour earlier, according to a report by the Interagency Committee on Grizzly Bears.
Leah Davis Lokan, a 65-year-old cyclist and retired nurse from California, was fatally attacked by the animal in the early morning hours of July 6 in Ovando,
The report revealed she initially kicked the bear out of her tent, however it returned an hour later and killed her while she was sleeping.
Lokan was camping with her sister, however she was alone in her tent at the time of the attack.
Waking up to the sound of a 417-pound bear “Huffing” by her head
According to reports, she woke up around 3 a.m. to the sound of a 417-pound bear “butting” her on the head from outside her tent, before alerting a couple, Joe and Kim Cole, camping nearby.
The three made enough noise to scare away the bear that was wandering on the way back.
The report notes that Lokan immediately removed all the food from his tent and kept a can of bear spray on hand.
The couple who helped her ward off the bear asked Lokan if she wanted to stay in her hotel room overnight, however she declined the offer before heading back to her tent to sleep.
The bear attacks the other victim with a broken neck, broken spine, killing her instantly
At around 4 a.m., the pair were again awakened by the sound of bears, but this time it appeared that Lokan was under attack. Jay Cole said he saw the bear “pounce” on Lokan and her tent, and tried to drive the animal away again.
Leah Davis Lokan is a California woman who was killed by a grizzly bear during a long-distance bike ride to Montana. #LeahDavisLokan https://t.co/MZCdrGebxe pic.twitter.com/HROuO5oGFu
– wikibioall (@wikibioall) July 8, 2021
An autopsy revealed that the deadly attack left Lokan with a broken neck and a severed spine, killing her instantly, according to reports. No one else was attacked by the bear, who eventually ran away.
The report said that the same grizzly bear, estimated to be between four and seven years old, also raided a nearby chicken coop just hours before the attack on Lokan, DNA tests showed.
Officials were able to locate and kill the animal a few days later.
