Bear Attack Shocks Alaska: Two US Army Soldiers Injured During Training Exercise

During a training exercise in Alaska, two soldiers from the U.S. Army sustained injuries following an encounter with a brown bear, as reported recently.

The incident involved members of the 11th Airborne Division who were participating in a “land navigation training event” at the Arctic Valley training area located within Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage. This information was confirmed by Lt. Col. Jo Nederhoed, a spokesperson for the division, to the Anchorage Daily News.

“Our top priority is the safety and well-being of our personnel,” Nederhoed stated. “We are currently investigating the incident and are working closely with local wildlife authorities to ensure the safety of everyone in the vicinity.”

The soldiers, whose names have not been released as their families are being notified, were reported to be “receiving appropriate medical care” as of Friday morning, according to Nederhoed.

A brown bear, similar to the one involved in the incident, can be seen fishing for salmon in a river at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, captured in a photograph from September 2021. The bear attack on the two soldiers occurred in Anchorage on Thursday, April 16, 2026, as noted by a military spokesperson. (Photo: Lian Law/U.S. National Park Service/Reuters)

Fox News Digital has reached out to the 11th Airborne Division for further comment. 

Wildlife officials from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game told the Anchorage Daily News that the incident appeared to have been a defensive attack after the bear recently emerged from its den, and that both soldiers were carrying bear spray and used it. 

A sign marks the entrance to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 13, 2025. (Mark Thiessen/AP)

“We hope both individuals have a full and quick recovery, and our thoughts are with them during this time,” Fish and Game Regional Supervisor Cyndi Wardlow told the newspaper. 

“In this case, having bear spray with them in the field may have saved their lives,” she said.

 The 11th Airborne Division is nicknamed the “Arctic Angels.” 

Coastal brown bear, also known as Grizzly Bear, Ursus Arcos, and Douglas fir also known as Douglas-fir and Oregon pine, Pseudotsuga menziesii, South Central Alaska. United States of America. (Education Images/Universal Images Group/Getty Images)

“The 11th Airborne Division executes expeditionary operations worldwide, conducts Multi-Domain Operations in the Indo-Pacific theater and the Arctic, and on order decisively defeats any adversary in extreme cold weather, mountainous and high-latitude environments through large scale combat operations,” it says on its website.