SKURDU (Kashmir English): Singer Quratulain Balouch, commonly referred to as QB, was injured in the Deosai National Park of Skardu when she was attacked by a brown bear while she was out camping on Thursday night. She was rescued by residents and taken to a hospital, where doctors report she is safe.
The rare brown bear attacked the camp of the singer, near Bara Pani, a well-known camping spot in Deosai, where she was accompanying her team for a shoot, said Gilgit-Baltistan wildlife officials.
She was accompanied by two friends, according to Baltistan police spokesperson Ghulam Muhammad, and was attacked by the bear when it injured both her arms with its claws and teeth. However, luckily her cameraman and another friend were left unharmed during the attack.
Sources reported that the bear fled after she screamed and warned others around her. Wildlife staff members who were patrolling the camp area immediately acted by providing first aid and relocating her to the RHQ Hospital in Skardu, where doctors confirmed that she is safe and out of harm’s way. Police have subsequently started investigating the incident.
The Himalayan brown bear, native to Deosai, also tends to migrate towards Bara Pani in search of food. Such incidents have happened before, Muhammad said.
Tourists have been asked by authorities to take precautions during camping in Deosai and to camp near hotels or safe zones at night.
Stretching across Skardu and Astore districts, Deosai National Park stands among Pakistan’s most beautiful landscapes. Every summer, the park receives a good number of national and foreign tourists who camp there for days.
It is also abode to an incredibly diverse array of wildlife, topped by perhaps its most iconic habitat dweller – the Himalayan marmot and the critically endangered Himalayan brown bear, whose population is estimated at a mere 77. They mainly subsist on fish from the Bandapani River.
