Bears Scaring Off School, Other Events in Japan

Tokyo, Nov. 5 (Jiji Press)–Amid a recent spate of bear attacks on people, a variety of outdoor events, including school marathons, have been canceled across Japan since October because of reported sightings of the animal in the vicinity. Miyagi Prefecture Sendai Daiichi High School in Sendai, the capital of the northeastern prefecture of Miyagi, called off a walking event in which some 950 current and former students were supposed to trek about 35 kilometers. Assistant principal Yasuaki Sobu, 55, regretted that the school had to cancel the traditional activity, which continued without a hiatus even during the COVID-19 pandemic and was to mark the 60th anniversary this year. “It was a hard decision because students and parents were looking forward to it,” Sobu said. “If the situation remains the same next year, we will have to cancel it,” he said looking troubled. In the city of Numata in the eastern prefecture of Gunma, four elementary schools called off marathons and their off-campus and other activities were also canceled or altered. Numata’s education board has requested that parents of students at the 20 elementary and junior high schools in the city drive the kids to and from school. The education board of Iida, Nagano Prefecture, central Japan, canceled a Mount Kazakoshi trail marathon event. Some 400 people, ranging from elementary school students to the elderly, had planned to participate from various parts of the country. Takeshi Goto, 55, of the education board said, “We had thought about such measures as giving bells and radios to volunteer guards (to make a noise and scare off bears) but concluded that it would be hard to secure the safety of participants and others.” “We will study how to hold the event safely for next year,” he said. In the northeastern prefecture of Akita, where a large number of bear attack incidents including deadly cases have taken place, a Halloween night event at a garden in the city of Daisen was canceled. The event’s organizers gave priority to the safety of attendees particularly because it was a night event, an official said. “It’s a pity because people had made reservations,” the official said. In Hokuto in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, an autumn foliage illumination event in Hachironuma Park, planned to run through Monday, was called off. The event, which is popular for the beauty of foliage reflected on the surface of a pond, drew some 23,000 viewers last year. “We thought the safety of visitors and others was the most important. It’s a pity because we have had an increasing number of visitors,” Kenya Matsuno, the 63-year-old secretary-general of the city’s tourism association, said. A tour for participants to experience tree planting scheduled for Nov. 16 in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, was also canceled. Some 30 people including parents with their kids planned to take part in the event. Yutaka Nagae, a 69-year-old public relations official of the tour, said people concerned held talks and decided to cancel the event for the safety of participants, citing a host of bear attacks on people nationwide and reports of sightings of bears in Chichibu. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]