A Gjoa Haven resident shot a young male polar bear that swam into the community on Aug. 28.

“He came right up to the shore,” said Wayne Puqiqnak, acting manager of the Gjoa Haven Hunters and Trappers Association.

He added that the animal appeared underweight.

“He was a five-foot-seven bear,” he said. “He didn’t look healthy at all.”

The incident occurred in the early afternoon, causing alarm.

“The polar bears are very risky,” Puqiqnak said. “People die from polar bears now. They could come back and kill a dog or a human so we have to put it down.”

Because the bear was only around two years old, it’s important to watch out for a mother or sibling because the family unit sometimes stays together until the young bears reach almost three years old, he said.