By Admin 
People are afraid of bears in the mountainous Akita province of Japan. The situation has gone out of control and that is why the government has had to send the army to deal with it. This step has been taken on the request of local authorities.
The operation began in the city of Kazuno in Akita Prefecture, where for weeks residents have been advised to avoid venturing into nearby dense forests, stay home after dark and carry bells to scare away bears that come looking for food near their homes.
Total 12 deaths due to bear attack
According to the Environment Ministry, there have been more than 100 attacks across Japan since April, resulting in a record 12 deaths. Two-thirds of these were from Akita Prefecture and nearby Iwate Prefecture. Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kei Sato said in a press conference in Tokyo on Wednesday (November 05, 2025), ‘In many areas, bears are entering populated areas and their attacks are causing loss of life and property.’
Akita officials say that this is the reason why we cannot delay any delay in taking measures to deal with bears. Bear sightings have increased six-fold this year to more than 8,000, prompting the province’s governor to seek help from Japan’s Self-Defense Forces (SDF) last week.
Rescue team deployed in bear attack area
An army truck, several jeeps and more than a dozen soldiers, some wearing body armor (bulletproof vests), gathered in Kazuno, a city of about 30,000 people, on Wednesday morning, Japan Today reported, citing a Reuters report.
These soldiers will help in transporting, setting and checking the box traps used to catch bears, but the work of killing them will be done by trained hunters, who will have more suitable weapons for the job. Due to the increasing number of bears, changes in natural food sources due to climate change and decreasing population in rural areas, bears and common people are facing conflict.
Bears seen 20,792 times in Japan
Japan Times, quoting data released by the Environment Ministry, said that till last Friday, bears were seen 20,792 times in Japan. According to statistics, in 2009, so many bears were seen at a record level, whereas in the first half of this financial year itself, this figure had reached more than 20,000.
In recent months, bears have attacked customers inside a supermarket, then attacked a tourist waiting at a bus stop near a UNESCO World Heritage site, and injured a worker cleaning bathing areas at a hot spring resort.
Japanese black and brown bears weigh so much
According to statistics, Japanese black bears (which are common in most parts of the country) can weigh up to 130 kilograms (287 pounds). On its northern island of Hokkaido, the brown bear can weigh up to 400 kg. Japan also deployed the military to help with wildlife control about ten years ago, when they conducted aerial surveillance to hunt wild deer.
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