As bear attacks rise in Japan, fearful residents change daily routines

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Rising bear attacks in Japan are prompting residents to change their routines and avoid areas where bears have been encountered. Jeff Kingston, who has experienced repeated encounters and a prior attack in Gunma's hills, says he has stopped walking there this year.

Jeff Kingston used to take long walks with his dogs across the hills of Gunma in central Japan. But not this year. He has good reason. Kingston said he has encountered bears in those mountains more than 100 times over the years and been charged by aggressive bears around a dozen times. In 2014, a black bear knocked him down and attacked him across the skull with its claws, leaving a gash that required nine stitches. “This year, I have actively refrained from going into the hills precisely...