Grizzly Bear Attack on School Students and Teachers Leaves 2 in Critical Condition, Multiple Injured By Becca Longmire

Two people are in critical condition and multiple others have been injured after a grizzly bear attacked a group of students and teachers who were out walking in Canada.

On Thursday, Nov. 20 at 1:46 p.m. local time, B.C. Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) received a call about an “animal attack” on a trail near Highway 20 in Bella Coola on British Columbia’s Central Coast, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).

Two people were critically injured and two others seriously hurt in the attack, while seven additional people were treated at the scene but did not require hospital treatment, the outlet reported, citing emergency officials.

Acwsalcta School — an independent school run by the Nuxalk Nation in Bella Coola — wrote in a Facebook post that the school would be closed on Friday, Nov. 21 “due to the bear incident.”

“It’s hard to know what to say during this very difficult time. We are so grateful for our team and our students,” the school wrote in the post.

The ages of the victims haven’t been confirmed by authorities and it’s not clear whether students and staff from the school were hurt during the incident.

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS) confirmed there had been a “grizzly bear attack” in the area, adding in a Facebook post, “Initial information suggests several people may have been injured.”

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“Public safety is the priority. The #BCCOS is on scene with RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) and directing all residents to stay out of the forested and river area near the 4 Mile area until further notice,” the post stated.

North District RCMP Corporal Madonna Saunderson said she didn’t know the age or gender of the students involved, but said the victims’ injuries were “very serious at the very least,” according to The Canadian Press.

The Nuxalk Nation confirmed on Thursday that the “aggressive bear in the area” remained on the loose, per Facebook posts, urging locals to stay indoors and not walk anywhere.

Veronica Schooner said her 10-year-old son, Alvarez, had been in the group of students attacked while out on a walk, according to The Canadian Press.

“He was running for his life,” she said, telling the news agency that her son was so close to the animal that “he even felt its fur.”

Schooner claimed many people tried to stop the attack, but said a male teacher “got the whole brunt of it” and was among those taken from the scene via helicopter, The Canadian Press reported.

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Schooner said her son Alvarez was “in shock” after the incident. “Everybody was in shock at the school. A lot of people were crying, and I don’t know, I just wanted my son, and I grabbed him, and then I took him home,” she told the outlet.

B.C. Emergency Health Services, North District RCMP Cpl. Madonna Saunderson, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service and Acwsalcta School didn’t immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for additional information.