Polar bear mauls a tourist in Norway – he had come to watch the solar eclipse

#solareclipse #polarbear #svalbard #faroeislands A tourist who had come to Norway to watch the solar eclipse was mauled by a Polar bear – it went for his head and had to be shot dead as reported in news.sky.com dated 19 March 2015. It seems on an average, three bears a year are shot in self-defense by people on Svalbard.
Thousands of tourists had gathered with plans to watch the solar eclipse and the victim was in a group of six on a snowscooter and skiing tour. He was later airlifted to hospital. He suffered injuries to the face and arm but his life is not in danger. His nationality is yet to be ascertained.
The Norwegian Arctic islands of Svalbard and Faroe Islands are the only places on land from where the total solar eclipse can be seen when the Moon will totally block out the Sun. Svalbard is located about 1,300-Km from the North Pole, and the Faroe Islands to the south.
Svalbard has already cautioned tourists on the risks of polar bears and of freezing temperatures – the temperature is expected to be around -18C on Friday, with partly cloudy skies.
Incidentally, the archipelago has about 2,500 residents and is expecting some 2,000 visitors for the eclipse. The Faroe Islands expect about 8,000 visitors and it would to swell their population of 50,000.

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