Tourist Mauled After Lowering Car Window To Take Selfie With Bear

A Scottish tourist experienced a frightening encounter with a brown bear while attempting to snap a photo through her car window.

Last month, 72-year-old Moira Gallacher was exploring Romania's Carpathian Mountains with her friend, Charmian Widdowson.

During their drive, they stopped to photograph some brown bears.

Gallacher was touring the European country with Widdowson, who had previously visited.

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The duo had landed in Bucharest on Sunday, April 21, and by Monday, April 22, they ventured on a road trip to the Carpathian Mountains where they encountered a mother bear and her cub.

Widdowson remarked to STV News that the bears looked 'gorgeous,' but their appearance was misleading.

She mentioned to STV News that the mother bear seemed 'hungry' and joked that it probably saw Gallacher as a potential meal.

The trouble began when they decided to roll down the car window for a clearer photo, which presented an opportunity to one of the bears.

Widdowson explained in a video interview with STV News: "What had happened was, the bear came up to the window on my friend's side.

"It let us take a picture and then walked away."

"But I didn't get a good shot, so we approached again, and this time the bear was on my side."

The two women were trying to get good photographs of the bears. X/ @STVNews

That was when the bear bit her in the arm, she recalled, saying it clamped down on Gallacher's arm.

Fortunately, Gallacher was wearing a thick Marks and Spencer jacket, which Widdowson humorously noted, "the poor bear got more jacket than arm."

Widdowson speculated that the bear attacked because it overheard their conversation about food.

She recounted: "My friend said, let's get something to eat. No, you are not allowed to give food. 

"Absolutely nothing, nothing, nothing. And I think he heard it and decided he had to eat my friend instead."

The 72-year-old was bitten on the arm. X / @STVNews

It was a close call for Gallacher, who was promptly taken to the hospital.

Andreea Gheordunescu, manager of the Curtea de Arges Municipal Hospital, confirmed that a 'foreign patient' was treated for 'wounds on her right hand, wounds caused by a bear bite'.

Gallacher reflected, "I was wearing a padded jacket and a top and another top - that's what saved my arm. 

"I've been very, very lucky. The shock has set in today, but everything's OK now."

She was reportedly released from the hospital a few days later.

And recently, a group's outing to the zoo turned out to be more intense than anyone had anticipated.

What started as a fun day to see and learn about animals quickly shifted to a stark glimpse of nature's raw side.

To the shock of everyone, especially a group of young children, a bear devoured a family of ducklings right before their eyes.