PAYSON, Ariz. — An Arizona construction worker sleeping in a half-built cabin was bitten on the calf by a bear Thursday night.
The incident happened east of Payson, near Tonto Village. Another person in the cabin with victim Jason Amperse was not hurt.
“They got the flashlight going and they looked at Jason’s leg and saw that he wasn’t damaged too bad,” boss Cal Schlect said. “And they shined the light over here and the bear was … looking in at them.”
The workers yelled and the bear was eventually scared off.
Dogs will attempt to track the bear which, if found, will be killed. Wildlife officials are also setting traps for the animal.
Jim Paxon, from Arizona Game and Fish, said there were indications it was the same bear that attacked a 74-year-old woman last month.
That woman suffered scratches to her face while sleeping at the Ponderosa Campground in Tonto National Forest, just a mile (kilometer) or so from Tonto Village.