*Warning: Video contains content that viewers may find upsetting *
Visitors from Australia watched helplessly from shore as a black bear struggled in the Sunwapta River in Jasper National Park before going over the falls earlier this month.
On Monday, July 8, Andrea Lowcock was visiting Sunwapta Falls when she spotted a bear that she thought was fishing in the river. Lowcock began to record the bear before she realized that the animal was fighting the current. Moments later, the struggling bear went over the waterfall.
There was no sign of the bear surfacing in the pool below the falls. The bear's condition remains unknown.
Lowcock was encouraged to share her video with Parks Canada and officials informed here that wildlife specialists were reviewing the footage.
In an email to Lowcock, Parks Canada representatives said they hoped the bear survived the ordeal and spoke to the resiliency of bears. "We're hoping that the high water level would flush the bear out downstream without them being hurt."
The Sunwapta Falls are located off the Icefields Parkway, roughly 55 kilometres south of the Jasper townsite.
