A couple sent a panicked message to relatives in what was their last note before they were mauled to death by a grizzly bear.
Doug Inglis and Jenny Gusse were killed on Friday at Banff National Park, Canada – established as the Rocky Mountains in 1885.
The pair were out hiking with their dog and had sent Colin Inglis – Doug’s uncle – a full itinerary of what they were hoping to do during their seven-day stay.
Known as experienced hikers, the couple remained in contact with Colin throughout their trip, according to family members.
On Friday, Doug and Jenny, both 62, messaged to say they were getting delayed in reaching their planned camping spot and instead set up camp near the Red Deer River in the Panther Valley.
According to the Calgary Herald, the couple then sent an SOS message to Colin, who knew they were in trouble immediately.
He said: “I got a call from their Garmin [inReach device] that said, ‘Bear attack bad’.
“The alarm bells were going off, ‘this is not good’ — that means there’d been some engagement. You’re completely helpless to know what’s going on.”
With the authorities notified, a helicopter was dispatched to try and locate the couple – but due to overcast conditions it was forced to turn back.
Instead, an on-the-ground response team was sent out in a bid to reach the coordinates of Doug and Jenny’s last known location.
It took the rescue team around four-and-a-half hours to reach the site, arriving at around 2am on Saturday morning.
Once there, they made the tragic discovery of Doug, Jenny and their seven-year-old border collie – all mauled to death.
It appeared Doug and Jenny – a research scientist and lab technician at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Research Centre – had failed in their attempts to fight off the bear with bear spray.
Colin continued: “One can of bear spray had been fully discharged but this bear was not to be deterred.
“Their tent was crushed and their e-readers were open, they were both discovered in their stocking feet.”
In another horrifying twist, the 25-year-old female bear was spotted as the team attempted to locate Doug and Jenny, and due to the aggression displayed towards the rescuers, it was shot.
An autopsy will be carried out to confirm it was the same bear that killed the two Canadian hikers.
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