An animal trainer tragically lost his life in a grizzly bear attack during a failed stunt at his cousin’s animal training center in the San Bernardino mountains near Los Angeles, USA. Stephan Miller, 39, who had a long history of working with bears in the entertainment industry, was assisting his cousin Randy Miller in filming a promotional video featuring Rocky, a 7.5-foot-tall grizzly bear weighing approximately 50 stone.
Rocky, a five-year-old grizzly bear known for its interactions with humans, unexpectedly attacked Stephan during the filming, biting him on the neck. Despite efforts to subdue the bear with pepper spray, Stephan succumbed to his injuries shortly after the incident, leaving behind a wife and two children.
Randy, who has been involved in raising exotic animals for over 25 years, expressed shock at the sudden turn of events, mentioning that all necessary precautions had been taken before the stunt. Following the incident, an investigation was launched by the state’s Department of Fish and Game and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to determine the cause of the attack.
Pressure from animal rights activists resulted in Rocky being spared from euthanasia, and he was relocated to an animal sanctuary in California. The training center, known as Randy Miller’s Predators in Action, was equipped with the required permits for conducting such activities, housing not only Rocky but also several other exotic animals, including bears, snakes, reptiles, and big cats.
Hollywood filmmaker Nick Palumbo, a close acquaintance of Stephan and Randy, expressed his grief over the incident, emphasizing the bond between Stephan and the bear, and urging that the bear did not intend to harm Stephan. Stephan’s tragic death shed light on the risks involved in working closely with wild animals, even those raised in captivity.