Scientists in a Russian base have been left trapped by up to five polar bears outside of their base. The team are located on the island of Vaygach and have sent for help to the authorities.
The team, which are unarmed apart from a few flares normally leave the base twice a day in order to take measurements from the sea. But the two female meteorologists and one mechanic, have been unable to scare off the bears and are now unable to go outside.
One of the team members said: “They sleep near the houses. Two of them move around together. The remaining one, he’s aggressive.”
Russian WWF polar bear expert Victor Nikiforov said he visited the team two weeks ago. Since then, no one has been able to reach them. He said that the area around the station is yet to be fenced off.