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Polar bear dies in BP hazing mishap ‘We feel awful about it,’ says company spokesman; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigates unusual case involving ammo mix-up Wesley Loy For Petroleum News
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the hazing death of a polar bear at BP’s Endicott oil field on Alaska’s North Slope.
Agency spokesman Bruce Woods confirmed to Petroleum News on Aug. 24 that an investigation had been opened. He said he couldn’t comment further.
BP spokesman Steve Rinehart, however, provided details on the unusual polar bear death.
Late on the evening of Aug. 3, he said, a Purcell Security guard was forced to take hazing measures to try to drive away an adult polar bear at Endicott, an offshore production facility east of Prudhoe Bay.
Such hazing is allowed under federal permits, and typically is carried out by the trained security guards in escalating fashion, starting with mild deterrents such as sounding horns or sirens, Rinehart said.
“Most of the time, that just turns the bear around,” he said.
Bear moved aggressively This time, however, the bear continued moving aggressively toward the guard’s vehicle, as well as employee housing, Rinehart said.
The guard, who had more than five years of experience, brought out a 12-guage shotgun and fired what he thought was a beanbag round, which hit the bear and ran it off.
In the ensuing days, the polar bear returned, hanging around the causeway that connects Endicott to the mainland. After lingering several days in the area, the bear swam to an island to the west.
On Aug. 15, it was determined the bear had died, Rinehart said. An examination found that a projectile had penetrated the body cavity.
“As near as we can tell,” Rinehart said, the guard accidentally shot the bear not with a beanbag round, but with what’s known as a cracker shell. A cracker is a fused, exploding round that’s meant to be fired ahead of an animal, not directly at it.
Hazing procedures changed BP is modifying procedures to make sure such a mix-up doesn’t occur again, Rinehart said.
Packaging, color coding and labeling will be used to help security guards know exactly what ammunition they’re firing, he said. And the hazing protocol will require a second person to witness the type of ammo being loaded into the firearm.
“The guard was trying to protect people, not hurt the bear,” Rinehart said.
“Frankly, we feel awful about it,” he said of the bear’s demise. “We’ve never had something like this happen on our leases in our 35 years here.”
Polar bears are a constant threat to workers in the North Slope oil fields. Visitors to Slope facilities are sure to notice the warning signs at doorways leading outside.
From 2005 to 2010, BP observed and reported 541 polar bear sightings at its facilities, Rinehart said. Hazing was necessary in 159 of those sightings, he said.
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