Bear on the prowl closes 100 schools in Japan

TT

Published 23.01

 

Picture of another bear that recently ran amok in Fukushima. Photo: /AP/TT

A bear that roamed the streets of a Japanese city for three days forced nearly 100 schools to close on Monday.

Dozens of hunters and police in the city of Utsunomiya, north of Tokyo, are searching for the animal, after more than ten reports of bear sightings were received since Saturday - including in a shopping street.

- We have vehicles out in the areas where a bear has been seen to inform people and urge them to stay indoors or in their vehicles, a city official told AFP.

A total of 94 municipal elementary and junior high schools were closed.

The bear that is now being hunted is described as about one meter long. But it is unclear whether it was one bear or several.

Bear attacks in Japan have increased in recent years and have become a major problem. Last year, 13 people were killed by bears in Japan, a record.