Grizzly Attack Survivor Faces Long Road to Recovery
A Montana man who faced a harrowing grizzly bear attack that cost him his lower jaw is on the path to recovery, but his journey is far from over, according to his family. Rudy Noorlander, the owner of a Big Sky snowmobile and all-terrain vehicle rental business, remains hospitalized in Salt Lake City, where he is expected to undergo surgeries until October, as shared by his daughter KateLynn Davis on Facebook.
The terrifying incident occurred while Noorlander was assisting two hunters who had rented ATVs from his business in their quest to locate a deer they had shot in southwestern Montana.
As they tracked a different deer, Noorlander encountered a smaller grizzly. Attempting to scare it off, he reached for his gun when a larger bear suddenly attacked him, as recounted by Davis. Unfortunately, his firearm malfunctioned, and he couldn’t access his bear spray in time. In a desperate attempt to fend off the bear, he resorted to punching it, but his efforts proved futile.
“The grizzly left a large scratch down his right chest, bit his arms, legs, and, to top it all off, gave him, as Rudy describes it, the most disgusting French kiss of his life before biting down and tearing off his lower jaw,” wrote Davis on a GoFundMe page.
One of the hunters eventually shot at the bear, prompting it to leave the scene, as confirmed by Montana’s wildlife department spokesperson, Morgan Jacobsen.
A rescue operation ensued, with Gallatin County Sheriff Search and Rescue team members airlifting Noorlander to a nearby hospital in Bozeman, where he was stabilized. He was later transported to the University of Utah Hospital for further treatment, as stated by Davis.
The incident unfolded in the vicinity of Big Sky, a popular resort area situated roughly 55 miles north of Yellowstone National Park. Following the attack, the U.S. Forest Service imposed an emergency closure in the area as authorities launched efforts to locate the bear responsible.
As of Monday, the grizzly bear had not been found, and there were no reported bear sightings in the region, Jacobsen confirmed. The investigation is ongoing, but officials believe the bear was defending a nearby animal carcass.
Jacobsen emphasized, “By all indications, this was a defensive encounter.”
This mauling occurred just a week after a female grizzly bear, responsible for a fatal attack on a woman near West Yellowstone in July, was euthanized by wildlife officials. The same bear had previously injured a man in Idaho in 2020 after breaking into a house near West Yellowstone.