San Diego hiker killed by grizzly bear as he snapped photos at Alaska’s Denali National Park

Richard White’s mauling was first in park’s 95-year history. Grizzly bear was later tracked and killed.

File photo of Grizzly bear. (URSUS ARCTOS)

A hiker was killed by a grizzly bear at Alaska’s Denali National Park in the first known fatal mauling in the park’s history.


The victim was 49-year-old Richard White of San Diego, according to the Anchorage Daily News.

Photos recovered from his camera showed that he lingered after encountering the bear near the Toklat River and took several pictures instead of backing away.

Three hikers found bloody clothes and an abandoned backpack near the river Friday afternoon, park representatives said.

They notified park rangers, who launched an air search for the scene and found one grizzly at the site where White was mauled.

On Saturday, rangers found that a bear had dragged his remains to a more secluded brushy area. Later in the day, they shot a grizzly believed to be the one that killed White.

White, like all backpackers at Denali, was required to undergo the park’s “Bear Aware” training before getting a permit to hike through the backcountry.

Park spokeswoman Maureen McLaughlin told the Anchorage Daily News that thanks to the mandatory training, “it's not common that we even have injuries related to bears.”

White’s death was the first death by mauling in Denali’s 95-year history.

The backcountry area where he was killed was closed to hikers and campers until further notice, officials said.