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“It was the scariest thing that’s ever happened in my life,” said Erin Greene, who along with a 72-year-old man who tried to fight off the bear with a shovel survived their injuries. Greene, who had come to Churchill the year before for a job in the tourist trade, said it was the other animals of Churchill — the beluga whales that she sings to as she runs paddleboat tours and her dozen rescued retired sled dogs — that helped her recover from the trauma.There have been no attacks since then, but the town is watchful.

At Halloween, trick-or-treating occurs when bears are hungriest, and dozens of volunteers line the streets to keep trouble at bay. Any time of year, troublesome bears that wander into town too often may be put into the polar bear jail — a big Quonset hut-style structure with 28 concrete-and-steel cells — before being returned to the wild. The building doesn’t fill up, but it can get busy enough to be noisy from banging and growling inside, Van Nest said.Tourists stand outside the Polar Bear Holding Facility, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)Tourists stand outside the Polar Bear Holding Facility, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

A polar bear trap sits outside the Polar Bear Holding Facility, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)A polar bear trap sits outside the Polar Bear Holding Facility, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Residents show polar bear pride in a way that mixes terror and fun, kind of like a rollercoaster.

“You know we’re the polar bear capital of the world, right? We have the product, it’s just about getting out there to see the bears safely,” said Dave Daley, who owns a gift shop, runs dog sleds and talks up the city like the former Chamber of Commerce president he is. “I always tell tourists or whatever ‘You know what, they’re the T. rex like, of the dinosaur era. They’re the Lords of the Arctic. They’ll eat you.”Follow Sibi Arasu on Twitter at @sibi123

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