A tragic incident has rocked Canada, where a 48-year-old mother and her 20-year-old daughter have died after being attacked by one or more grizzly bears while they were hiking in a forested area. Their bodies were found on separate days on a trail near Bella Coola, in the province of British Columbia, while authorities have launched a search for the animal or animals involved in the attack.

The victims have been identified as Jennifer Barkas, 48, and her daughter, Sela Reed, 20. They were reported missing on Sunday, November 1, and the first body was found on Monday, November 2, on the Snuka West Trail. A day later, authorities discovered the second body. According to CBC reports, the two bodies were found about 150 meters apart. However, it has not yet been determined whether the attack was carried out by a single bear or several grizzly bears. Researcher Jeff Tyre, in a statement to the media on Wednesday, said that authorities are working to identify and capture the animal responsible for the attack.

He warned that any bear captured would be assessed by authorities and, if confirmed to have participated in the fatal attack, would be euthanized, in accordance with provincial guidelines for managing human-wildlife conflict. According to Tyre, the Bella Coola Valley is home to many grizzly bears and there have been previous reports of them being seen in the surrounding area. However, during the first night of the search, none of the animals had been captured.

Authorities said a full investigation is underway to determine the exact circumstances of the tragedy. Jennifer's brother, Josh Barkas, previously told CBC that his sister and niece were familiar with the trail where the attack occurred. He described their outing as a casual, peaceful nature walk. Jennifer worked as an art therapist in Bella Coola and was a mother of four. She had recently moved to the area to start a new chapter in her life and pursue a new career path.

Meanwhile, Sela, just 20 years old, was studying through Athabasca University's online education program. Her relatives describe her as a sweet, calm girl with a kind soul. "Sela was only 20 years old and had her whole life ahead of her. She had just begun her journey to adulthood, which makes this loss even more painful," the family's message says. After the tragedy, relatives have opened a campaign on the GoFundMe platform to help the family with unexpected funeral expenses and organizing funeral ceremonies for both victims. The campaign has raised more than $25, while the family says that no one could have imagined such a loss.

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