CommunityIncidents

Fundraising started for bear attack survivor

A GoFundMe campaign has been started to assist the victim of last Sunday’s grizzly bear attack near Haines Junction.

Vanessa Leegstra is still recovering from her injuries at Whitehorse General Hospital.

Brittany Au has created the GoFundMe campaign to support her friend during her challenging time.

As stated on the funding page, Leegstra’s husband, Dave, has had to take time off work to care for her and their daughter, Rosalie.

“On June 30th, Vanessa was attacked by a grizzly bear while on a run. Her dog Luna managed to scare off two of the grizzly bears, but a third one attacked Vanessa,” the page reads, noting that there is still a long way to go in her recovery.

The funding goal for Leegstra has been set at $5,000.

As of this afternoon, $1,000 has been raised.

Conservation officers killed three of the bears involved in the incident at the Pine Lake campground, which was closed after the attack. A fourth bear was not located.

Kaicheng Xin

New reporter for The Yukon Star, Kai began his journalism career in Yellowknife with CBC North, then went to Black Press for community news and investigative journalism. In Whitehorse he is covering city council and other local news.

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