JAPAN is in the grip of a terrifying bear crisis – with soldiers now being called in to help tackle an unprecedented wave of fatal attacks.
The latest victim, 79-year-old Kiyo Goto, was found dead in a forested mountain area of Akita Prefecture on Monday morning.
Police believe she was mauled to death while out picking mushrooms – a common pastime in the region.
Goto, who lived near the mountains, had phoned her family on Sunday morning to say she was heading out.
When she failed to return by the evening, relatives grew worried and contacted the police.
Her body was discovered at around 9 a.m. the following day with her face so badly injured that officers immediately suspected a bear attack.
The tragedy is the latest in a series of horrific maulings that have left Japan reeling.
This year alone, ten people – excluding Kiyo Goto – have been killed and more than 100 injured by rampaging bears across the country.
Victims have been savaged outside schools, at bus stops, and even inside supermarkets.
One man’s head was ripped clean off in a gruesome attack, while others have been left mutilated and dismembered.
The crisis has become so severe that Akita Governor Kenta Suzuki has begged for military assistance.
“The exhaustion on the ground is reaching its limit,” he warned in a desperate Instagram post on Sunday.
He said he planned to visit Japan’s defence ministry as soon as Tuesday to personally request help with a bear cull.
A defence ministry spokesperson confirmed: “She was unaware of any planned visit.”
Governor Suzuki’s plea comes as Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) would provide logistical support – including transporting and disposing of culled bears.
Under Japanese law, the SDF cannot shoot bears directly, but they can assist local hunters on the ground.
Akita, located in Japan’s northern Honshu island, has been one of the hardest-hit areas.
The region is home to Asian black bears, while brown bears roam the northern island of Hokkaido, according to the Environment Ministry.
On Friday, a group attack in Akita left one man dead and three others hospitalised.
Police discovered the body near a farm after receiving emergency calls about a bear rampage in the mountains.
Just hours earlier, in Toyama Prefecture, a woman in her 70s was also injured in another bear assault.
In northern Iwate Prefecture, 60-year-old Katsumi Sasazaki went missing while cleaning an outdoor bath.
The terrifying rise of ‘ninja bears’
OFFICIALS are said to be investigating a group of savage bears rampaging in Japan who are feared to have acquired a taste for human flesh.
Residents of the peaceful island of Hokkaido have been grappling with fears over these “ninja bears” in recent months.
They have been attacking humans and devouring cattle in bloody attacks.
For many years, bears in Japan stayed in the wild and did not interfere with human lives much – except for just a few rare glimpses.
However, now dozens of wild bears have been running amok
and causing widespread destruction.
Although bears largely consume a vegetarian diet, experts have started to fear that the savage beasts have now acquired a taste for flesh.
It comes after several dead deer started to appear in the woods after they were hunted by humans.
Their remains were dumped in the woodlands where bears stumbled upon them.
Yasushi Fujimoto, head of a hunting organisation, said: “The mountain is turning into a restaurant for bears, because of the remains left on the mountain after hunting.
“The lack of professional hunters, like park rangers in Alaska financed by the government, is a problem when it comes to controlling the number of bears.”
Investigators later found human blood and bear fur at the scene.
Another man in his 70s was found decapitated, his body covered in claw marks and his limbs shredded, also in Iwate.
In Nagano Prefecture, a 78-year-old man was discovered dead last month – his body bearing multiple claw wounds.
The government has vowed to take tough new measures to curb the carnage.
“We are committed to further strengthening various measures including securing and training government hunters and managing the bear population,” officials said this week.
Specialist hunters are now being deployed in areas where bears are being spotted with alarming frequency.
Experts blame deforestation and Japan’s shrinking population for the sudden surge in human-bear encounters.
With fewer people in rural towns, bears are venturing closer to cities in search of food and shelter.
Recent incidents have shown just how bold the animals have become.
In Numata, north of Tokyo, a 4.5ft bear stormed a supermarket, injuring two elderly men.
Terrified shoppers were trapped inside as the bear rampaged through aisles, slashing at anyone in its path.
Elsewhere, a farmer in Iwate was scratched and bitten after a bear and her cub wandered right up to his house.
Foreigners haven’t escaped the attacks either.
Kiwi ultra-marathon runner Billy Halloran, 32, had his arm shattered and calf ripped open when a pair of 60kg bears pounced on him mid-run.
One bear clamped down on his arm, snapping it clean through, before sinking its teeth into his leg.
The record-breaking number of fatal maulings has turned Japan into the world’s bear attack capital – and locals are demanding action.
With 11 deaths and counting, authorities warn the crisis is far from over.
Officials have labelled it a “serious problem”, promising an aggressive response before more lives are lost.
