Alaska mom attacked, dragged by bear “simply stepped outside for a jog,” family says

The family of a woman who was mauled by a bear last week outside of her home in Alaska said she had “simply stepped outside for a jog” when the animal attacked, dragging her roughly 100 feet down the road to a neighbor’s property.

Anchorage-based CBS affiliate KTUU identified the woman as Ariean Fabrizio Colton, a resident of the coastal city of Kenai, where state wildlife officials say bear encounters are not uncommon. Her sister-in-law shared a statement with KTUU on behalf of the family, which noted that Colton had begun “a long road to recovery” in the aftermath of the attack that left her seriously injured.

“The reality is that this could have happened to anyone,” the statement said, according to KTUU. “Ariean simply stepped outside for a morning jog on a residential street—an ordinary moment, like grabbing the mail or taking the trash out before starting the day.”

In their statement, Colton’s family praised her “remarkable strength” as she remained hospitalized with substantial wounds to her face and scalp, KTUU reported. A statement on a GoFundMe launched by the family said her injuries “will require extensive surgeries and a long hospital stay.”

“We are very grateful for the outpouring of support since Ariean’s attack,” the statement continued. “We ask for privacyand compassion as she begins a long road to recovery and we urge kindness in how her story is shared online.”

Colton, 36, left her home in Kenai at around 5:45 a.m. local time on Aug. 26 to set out for her jog, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said at the time. In a public dispatch, state troopers said the bear attacked her near her driveway and was later found by a neighbor. 

Alaska Wildlife Trooper David Lorring previously told KTUU that the woman was only 50 years or so away from her house when the bear approached and subsequently “dragged her approximately 100 yards down to the road” to the neighbor’s property.

“Ariean is a loving wife, mother of three, and a nurse, known for her adventurous spirit and love of nature,” the GoFundMe page reads. The page has raised over $90,000 as of Wednesday.

State troopers, local police and a crew from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game searched the area for the bear, which they believed was a brown bear, but could not find it. Troopers said patrols of the area would continue, and urged people in the community “to remain vigilant while outdoors.”