In August 2024, a technician working at a remote research station in the Arctic went outside to photograph a polar bear. He didn’t know there were actually two bears. To get outside, Christopher Best walked past large posted signs warning employees about polar bears. Once he was outside the building, the bears blocked Best’s escape route and mauled him to death.
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A report obtained by The Canadian Press shares new details about the tragic incident and the safety measures Best’s former employer, Nasittuq Corporation, plans to take to prevent incidents in the future. Details include phone conversations Best had with his parents leading up to the incident, during which the man assured his mother that the bears weren’t very close. Best had already taken some photos of polar bears and posted them online but was eager to get more.
[RELATED: Two Polar Bears Attacked a Man Working in the Remote Arctic]
Another employee was looking out a window during the attack and alerted others to the situation. Employees tried to scare the bears off, but it was too late.
Best was 34 years old. He had arrived at the remote installation on Brevoort Island—a small, uninhabited island off the coast of northern Canada—just one day before his death.
See Best’s final photos on his amateur photography Facebook page, posted the day before the incident, presumably the day he arrived at the station:
Header stock image by Gerry Legere / 500px/Getty Images
