Black Bear Drags Boy Scout Leader Into Cave

By Tracy Anderson

This is one Boy Scout outing three teenagers will never forget.

It was around noon when their scout leader, 50-year-old Christopher Petronino, went to show the kids a cave he’s known about since the 1980s near Boonton, New Jersey. 

But what Petronino did not realize is that there was a bear in the cave hibernating, or at least attempting to hibernate.

As the scout leader stepped into a small crevice leading to the cave, suddenly like a horror film the bear grabbed his foot and pulled him in.

The boys called 911, and as they waited for an emergency crew to arrive, they coaxed the animal out of the cave with food, according to NJ.com.

When rescue officials arrived about an hour later they found the scout leader bleeding from the head, neck and arm.

According to rescuers, Petronino used a small rock hammer to fight back against the bear. The man then pulled his sweatshirt over his shoulders and curled up into a fetal position to avoid further injury.

“It’s a small cave,” Dave Oaks, who owns a nearby horse farm, told the local CBS station. “If you see a cave, you shoudl think twice before going in there. The last thing you want to do is poke your nose into a cave where there is a bear trying to hybernate.”

The scout master was airlifted to a local hospital and is reportedly going to be okay. 

For more stories about bear attacks click here.

Photo credit: Dreamstime

Bears in Action

  • King of the mountain

    King of the mountain

  • Here fishey, fishey

    Here fishey, fishey

  • Get outta here!!!

    Get outta here!!!

  • Hum Diddy Um Diddy Umpt

    Hum Diddy Um Diddy Umpt

  • Who's that?

    Who's that?

  • Hey, break it up you two!

    Hey, break it up you two!

  • I hate fishing in the rain.

    I hate fishing in the rain.

  • Is my hair straight?

    Is my hair straight?

  • Play fighting? How cute.

    Play fighting? How cute.

  • I thought I smelled a salmon.

    I thought I smelled a salmon.

  • Hey don't look at me right now.

    Hey don't look at me right now.

  • Yes!! Got one!

    Yes!! Got one!

  • Fuzzy in tall grass.

    Fuzzy in tall grass.

  • Now this is gonna happen.

    Now this is gonna happen.

  • Where's the ice?

    Where's the ice?

  • Don't mess with me.

    Don't mess with me.

  • Man, am I tired

    Man, am I tired

  • Come give me a hug, I'm crazy

    Come give me a hug, I'm crazy

  • Damn, not this again

    Damn, not this again

  • Paintballs are no match

    Paintballs are no match

  • I will climb anything for an egg

    I will climb anything for an egg

  • Ah, how cute

    Ah, how cute

  • Now, which way to the campground

    Now, which way to the campground

  • Nothing to see here

    Nothing to see here

  • Yea, I'm not the cutest

    Yea, I'm not the cutest

  • What's that?

    What's that?

  • Black bear in field

    Black bear in field

  • Grizzly in Glacier

    Grizzly in Glacier

  • Grizzlies in Alaska

    Grizzlies in Alaska

  • A stallion of a bear

    A stallion of a bear

  • Big male grizzly

    Big male grizzly

  • Hey big guy

    Hey big guy
Tracy Anderson
Tracy Anderson

Tracy Anderson’s achievements as a multi-platform fitness/wellness pioneer and author make her the world’s most renowned expert in the health and fitness industry. She is best known for her Tracy Anderson Method, with devotees including Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Lopez, Victoria Beckham, Nicole Richie and Robert Downey Jr. Over the past 16 years, the Tracy Anderson Method has grown and evolved, though the basic premise remains the same: Tracy continues to develop thousands of new routines to ensure that no client ever plateaus.   

With four studio locations—including a brand-new studio in Los Angeles’ Brentwood neighborhood—and more than 160 DVDs, Tracy has transformed the bodies of thousands of people across the globe. She has designed several tech innovations and fitness solutions, including the patented Iso-Kinetic Band System, The Hybrid Body Reformer, The Super G Floor, The Sprung AB Block, and The Men’s High Intensity Machine. In addition, Tracy has created a meal replacement shake, a nutrient program and is offering global real time video streaming from inside her studios.  ​

To learn more, visit tracyanderson.com.​

| When I'm teaching, I'm most impressed by a student who shows up for me and for themselves, is all in and not judgmental. 

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