Overview
- Japan revised rules taking effect Nov. 13 to allow police to kill problem bears with rifles, with two four-person teams deployed in both Akita and Iwate to respond in populated areas.
- The teams include two rifle shooters per unit and will rotate through a one‑week preparation period followed by roughly two weeks of on‑scene culling operations in coordination with local forces.
- The Ground Self‑Defense Force expanded logistical support in Akita to five municipalities, transporting 14 box traps, moving three carcasses to burial sites, and using heavy machinery to dig pits.
- JR East recorded 71 train–bear collisions through the end of October, a record level that has caused service suspensions as crews avoid approaching bears and rely on local hunting groups for removal.
- Municipal readiness broadened from drills to action, with Shiga’s Maibara staging an emergency‑shooting exercise using drones and evacuations and Yamagata’s Nagai city culling one bear on Nov. 13 without injuries reported.