Bear chases skier down mountain in terrifying video footage

Terrifying video footage has emerged of a bear chasing a skier down a mountain.

The incident took place on Saturday (January 23) when a bear was witnessed chasing the skier down a slope in Predeal, Romania, Newsweek reports.

From the chairlift above, others watched in horror as they attempted to warn the skier of the approaching bear.

According to local newspaper Ziarul De Iasi, as translated by Google Translate, some shouted: "Faster, faster! Come on, the bear is chasing you! Faster! God forbid, don't look back!"

As the bear continued to chase the skier, they threw their backpack onto the ground in a desperate bid to distract the animal.

The skier's quick thinking was praised by a spokesperson for the county inspectorate of gendarmerie, Ion Zaharia, who told the television network Digi24 that it worked and the bear became preoccupied with the backpack instead of the pursuit.

This enabled the skier to make his way to safety.

Officials received three calls about a bear sighting that day, according to the mountain gendarmes.

Two of these sightings took place at the Clabucet resort, Newsweek reports, however, the third took place on the slope where the chase took place, which was reportedly closed at the time.

When officials arrived at the scene in an all-terrain vehicle, the bear fled into the nearby forest, presumably spooked by the noise.

People in the area were subsequently notified by authorities via Ro-Alert - Romania's public warning system.

This incident comes after a man grabbed a bear by the throat late last year in a desperate bid to save his dog's life.

As reported by CBS 13, Benham was playing with his 90-pound pit bull, Buddy, near his home off You Bet Road in Grass Valley, California, when he realized that something did not sound right.

"I heard a growl, looked about 75-100 feet down, and the bear was dragging [Buddy] by his head, had his head in his mouth," Benham said.

Despite the sheer size of the pair, he went on to spring into action to save his pet's life.

"Honestly the only thing I could think of was 'save my baby,'" Benham told the news station.

"I just ran down there, plowed into the bear, tackled it and grabbed it by the throat and started hitting it in the face and the eye until it let go," Benham added.

Per CBS 13, Buddy required staples, stitches, and tubes inserted into his head in order to drain fluid, but he made a full recovery.