A New Mexico family is asking that Benjamin Halona be remembered for his career as a firefighter, not for the violent way his life ended — killed by a bear that forced its way into his house in the Navajo Nation community of Crystal at about 1 p.m. on Thursday, August 20, 2026, the Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife said.
Halona, 67, was home by himself when the animal got inside. His stepson, Casey, had gone to the post office, leaving him alone in the house.
Halona had few options. He had been widowed in February, when his wife, Bernadine, died of an illness, and he was recovering from a seizure that had left him relying on a walker and a wheelchair. He could not get away from the bear.
A Stepson’s Frantic Call for Help
When Casey returned, the door was standing ajar. Then he saw the bear inside.
He got into a nearby room, barricaded himself in and hid in a crawlspace. From there, he used his cellphone to call for help. He also called two relatives — his stepfather’s sister, Gloria Halona, and his stepfather’s niece, Samantha Vandever, who is Gloria Halona’s daughter.
The two women drove to the home. When they arrived, the bear was outside the house, and they honked the car horn until the animal ran off. Inside, they came upon what Vandever called a “horrific scene.”
Responding law enforcement officers shot and wounded the bear, but it fled into nearby woods, the wildlife department said in a Facebook post. Responders later tracked the animal down and neutralized it, and the department confirmed that Halona died of the injuries he suffered in the attack. The Navajo Police Department gave the same account in a statement. Fatal bear attacks in New Mexico are extraordinarily rare. Halona’s was only the second reported in the state in a century, and the first in 25 years.
Remembered for His Firefighting Career
Halona’s relatives have said they want him defined by the work he did rather than by the manner of his death, highlighting his commitment and his career as a firefighter. He also sold tamales.
Vandever said her uncle went through a great deal in his lifetime, and that his relatives are devastated by what happened to him. She said the aftermath the family walked into was overwhelming.
Funeral services were held August 29. Left behind, according to his family, are a great-grandchild, 15 grandchildren, five stepchildren, four children and two siblings.
Officials Point to Drought Conditions
The killing came at a time when the Navajo Nation had reported a rise in bear sightings across its communities. Navajo police have said that drought and low moisture had cut into the natural food supply bears depend on, pushing the animals to roam farther and take bigger risks as they hunt for calories and prepare for hibernation.
Food drives the majority of run-ins between people and bears, the wildlife department has said, and it has warned residents to treat black bears as unpredictable animals capable of turning dangerous without warning. Such attacks are unusual, the department said, but any bear may act defensively or aggressively, and residents should keep their distance — no feeding, no following, and no close-range photographs.
Anyone who runs into a bear should resist the urge to flee, the department advised. Its guidance calls for keeping the animal in view, easing away and leaving it an unobstructed path out. If it closes the gap, residents should hold their position, make themselves look as big as possible and generate as much noise as they can. Children belong close by and dogs on a leash, with no dog allowed to chase or confront a bear. A black bear that does attack, the department said, should be fought off with anything within reach.
The wildlife department extended its condolences to Halona’s family, his loved ones and the Crystal community after the attack.
The scale of the problem reaches well beyond the Navajo Nation. The New Mexico Department of Wildlife counted 253 bears killed statewide in the license year that began April 1, among them 186 killed as threats to people, livestock, pets or property. In the whole of the previous license year, that second figure was 60.