KUALA LUMPUR: A man in Canada's far north risked his life to protect his wife from a polar bear attack.
According to a BBC report, the incident took place early on Tuesday in Fort Severn First Nation, a remote community in Ontario.
The couple was outside at 5pm local time when they encountered the bear in their driveway.
As the bear lunged at his wife, the man bravely jumped on the animal to intervene.
A neighbour, armed with a gun, arrived shortly after and shot the bear, causing it to retreat into the woods.
The bear later died from its injuries.
The man sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries to his arms and legs and was treated at a local nursing station.
Experts said that polar bear attacks on humans were rare, typically occurring when the bears were hungry or unwell.
Climate change is believed to be pushing some polar bears inland in search of food.
Alysa McCall from Polar Bear International advised that in the event of an attack, people should fight back rather than playing dead, as commonly recommended.