9-1-1 call audio from hikers attacked by bear released
Audio of a 9-1-1 call from the one of the hikers with Darsh Patel on a trail inside the Apshawa Trail in West Milford reveal they were concerned for one of the hikers after a bear began chasing them.
In tapes released to NJ.com, the unidentified male tells the dispatcher he was "scared out his mind" for his friend and asked for help to be sent "really soon," explaining he had run to a house at 581 Macopin Road which is located just outside the Apshawa Tract. The dispatcher transferred the call to neighboring Bloomingdale until the man called back and clarified his location.
Two hours later the body of the 22-year-old from Edison was found by a search and rescue team with the bear circling the body, according to NJ.com, prompting a standoff then ended when a West Milford police officer fired his weapon at the 300-pound bear.
The attack on Patel was the first fatal bear-human encounter on record in New Jersey according to Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Larry Ragonese.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report
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