Trick-or-treaters on Hudson Bay get helicopter escort, polar bear patrol

The Canadian Press ^ | October 29, 2009 | Chinta Puxley,

[george76]

Youngsters in Churchill are warned not to dress in furry white costumes, to steer clear of baited traps stuffed with seal meat and to listen for the tell-tale sound of fireworks.

That's because these candy-seekers have more to worry about than ghosts and goblins. They need to avoid a different kind of predator on Halloween - the polar bear.

School children get a visit from the polar bear patrol team to go over safety tips. On the day of Halloween, several conservation officers take to the sky in a helicopter to see if there are any bears nearby. As dusk descends, Mountie patrol cars and other emergency vehicles are parked around the town's perimeter ...

In Churchill - known as the polar bear capital of the world ...

"It's a precautionary measure because the polar bear is a predatory animal," said Const. Mike Boychuk. "Our main goal is to have a safe community ...

Kids know not to dress up like polar bears or anything resembling a white furry beast for fear of sparking a false alarm. They are told to stay away from bear traps and to never follow any large bear-claw footprints in the snow.

[fanfan]

Canada Ping.

[CougarGA7]

TRICK OR TREAT!!

[a fool in paradise]

Bear claw PING

[JPG]

This report is a lie. Algore told me that ALL of the polar bears are floating around on rapidly melting little chunks of ice.

[george76]

News that you can use.

never follow any large bear-claw footprints in the snow

[Snowyman]

[Springman]

Can we send some “Guests” from Club Gitmo or some people from Detroit up there?

The Polar Bears look hungry!!!

[Paladin2]

In Churchill, don’t follow any small ones either - you could be between the kids and the mom.

[Slings and Arrows]

Darn helicoper parents...

[jazusamo]

Hah! This gives a new meaning to "trick or treat."

never follow any large bear-claw footprints in the snow

Oh come on, I hear hunters costumes are popular there and the 10 year olds carry 300 Mags. :-)

[a fool in paradise]

Algore told me that ALL of the polar bears are floating around on rapidly melting little chunks of ice.

"Halp!!!"

[RazzPutin]

I was in Churchill at Halloween many years ago, before globull warming struck. My memory must be fuzzy, because I could swear that Hudson Bay was ice-free.
The bears were not drowning. They mostly hung around outside town mugging for tourists and waiting for the Bay to freeze up.
One bear wandered down Main Street early in the morning, prompting a tourist to abandon his walk and dive into a passing patrol truck.

[green pastures]

Yeah, that’s what I was thinking too... LOL!

[sig226]

how much does it cost to fly the helicopter? is it more than $10,000 per hour?

[fanfan]

Can we send some “Guests” from Club Gitmo or some people from Detroit up there?

Yes, and give them symbols.

[MediaMole]

[Oztrich Boy]

Youngsters in Churchill are warned not to dress in furry white costumes

Okalee dokalee

[Seadog Bytes]

Yeah. I thought Algore said all these bears were gone, dead, drowned. If we can't trust Al Gore on this 'highly scientific stuff', will we have to rely on Nancy Pelosi...???!!! (...or maybe Algore was just relying on the 'climate models' to predict the bears' condition, and... Oh. Oops. I guess we DID hear that all those fancy models share just one minor cosmetic defect... they don't really match up too well with the real world.)

[Daffynition]

"Kids know not to dress up like polar bears or anything resembling a white furry beast for fear of sparking a false alarm.............."