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A 56-year-old man is recovering in a Calgary hospital after getting mauled by a grizzly bear while hunting Sunday morning near the southern B.C. town of Fernie.

A spokesman for STARS air ambulance says a crew responded to an emergency call just before 9:30 a.m.

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David Fairbanks says the man was not only attacked, but also shot by his hunting partner who was trying to neutralize the animal.

B.C.’s environment ministry says the hunting partner managed to kill the bear and was not injured in the incident.

Conservation officers and other first responders rushed to the scene. The victim was driven out of the forested area on an ATV, then flown by helicopter to a Calgary hospital.

The man was in stable condition when he was flown from the area and his injuries are described as non life-threatening.

Provincial conservation officers from Fernie and Cranbrook, B.C., are examining the scene.

Grizzly encounters near Fernie are common, particularly in the nearby Flathead Valley, where there are more than 150 of the bears – one per 15 square kilometres – according to the city’s tourism website.