Collision with bear shocks bus passengers in Tampere

A bear collided with a bus north of the city of Tampere, central Finland on Wednesday, local media reported.

"It was a major bump," bus driver Jukka Kujansuu told Finnish language newspaper Aamulehti describing the collision. The bear ran away immediately after the accident.

"When I stopped the bus, the bear was already trying to climb over the highway fence," said Kujansuu. There were only four passengers in the bus. No one was injured, except possibly the bear.

Police and wild animal control association volunteers kept searching for the bear all day, but it was not found. Dogs could trace its trail until a major ditch filled with water.

Officials warned locals against going to the nearby forests now. "The bear left on all fours but may have been injured internally."

Large carnivores -- both wolves and bears -- have been a growing problem in Finnish small communities. In 2017, some 2,100 bears lived in Finland, according to official estimates. The number was some 200 more than in 2016.

Erkki Lensu, chairman of the local wild game association, said that bears have been spotted in local villages. "They have done some damage and destroyed nests of bees."

Bears that are not afraid of people and remain near homes are either killed or evicted.

Lensu repeated the instructions that if a human meets a bear, calm has to be maintained and the bear must be looked into the eyes while going back slowly. "No fast movements or sudden escapes."

The brown bear is a strictly protected species. Hunting of bears is regulated by the Habitats Directive of the European Union. Bear hunting licences are given in Finland based on official bear population estimates.