Selah Reed’s family first realized something was wrong when the 20-year-old missed a routine Saturday evening call with her sister.
The next morning, when no one had heard from Reed or his mother, Jenny Balcarras, they asked the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to check their home in Bella Coola, on British Columbia’s central coast. Balcarras’ car was missing and the doors were locked. They found the car at a trailhead on the road, but Balcarras and Reed were nowhere to be found.
Family members across Canada and the United States began to mobilize. Jenny Balcarras’ brother, Matt, headed north from Vancouver Island and her brother traveled from Calgary. They met up and drove all night, but received a call late Monday that their sister had been killed, possibly by a grizzly bear.
When they arrived at the trailhead Tuesday morning, ready to join the search for Reed, his remains were also found. The search was now a tragic recovery effort.
AJ Reed via Matthew Balcarras via AP 
The murders of Jennifer Balcarras, 48, and her daughter occurred just 3 to 4 kilometers (1.8 to 2.4 miles) from where a a grizzly bear attacked a group of schoolchildren and teachers last year as they walked on a trail. Eleven were injured, including two seriously, during the attack on November 20, 2025.
Jeff Tyre, an inspector with the Conservation Officer Service, said the aggressive bear was never captured, but authorities were able to collect its DNA. Authorities set new traps in hopes of catching the bear involved in last weekend’s attack and finding out if it was the same bear from a year ago. They also don’t know if more than one bear was involved.
Terry Webber, chief administrative officer of the Nuxalk Nation, said the killings were a trigger for families traumatized by last year’s attack.
“Our community is still healing,” he said, adding that they have imposed a curfew and are providing mental health services to the community. “Our priority is to ensure their safety and ensure the support of our community.”
Bear attack complicates search
The delay in searching for the remains of the two women was complicated by the difficult terrain, even though it was close to the trailhead, and by the behavior of the grizzly bear.
Searchers first found Jenny Balcarras, then her daughter. The search was aided by more resources and a cadaver dog, Matt Balcarras said.
Researchers found her niece’s remains in a bear cache – a place where bears hide food, sometimes by digging a small hole and covering it with branches and vegetation to keep other animals and birds away.
“Even though it was less than 100 meters (330 feet), locating the remains in a cache is difficult,” he said.
By the time authorities located his niece, she could only be identified by her clothing, he said. His sister was in a similar condition, but they knew who she was because of several small tattoos, he said.
“There is no obvious body to identify,” he said. “The coroner’s investigation will include DNA and dental analyses. But there is no doubt that the remains found are theirs.”
Balcarras was comfortable in difficult environments
Grizzly bears are common around the Bella Coola community, officials said. Conservation officials maintain a hotline for people to report problem bears, but no calls have been received recently, Tire said during a news briefing.
Balcarras, an art therapist, had moved to Bella Coola over the summer. She had previously lived in Alaska, where her children were born, and was “the central organizing person in our family,” Matt Balcarras said.
“In the classic, strong style of a single mother, she managed to build a career and a life for herself and her children,” Balcarras said. She was small in stature but strong in character and physical ability, he said.
She lived at ease among wildlife, he said.
“She lived in the bush when her children were babies,” he said. “She and my niece were not naive, stupid, or misinformed. They have lived in these areas and been around countless species of animals for years and years and decades.”
Other bear attacks in British Columbia
There are an estimated 10,000 to 13,000 grizzly bears living in British Columbia, according to the province’s Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. The species is classified as vulnerable. Conflicts between grizzly bears and humans are considered “relatively rare,” the ministry said, unless the animals are frightened or protective of their young or food. However, several grizzly bear attacks have occurred in the province in recent years.
In October 2025, a a grizzly bear injured two hikers in the McGregor Mountains region of British Columbia, northeast of Prince George. One of the hikers was taken to hospital in critical condition and died a few weeks later from his injuries. The grizzly bear was later found dead, according to the BC Conservation Officer Service.
A man suffered “serious injuries”, including broken bones and lacerations, after being attacked by a grizzly bear while hunting in the Elkford, British Columbia area in May 2024. He managed to shoot the bear in self-defense. The animal was later found dead. The man was flown to an area hospital for treatment.
A A 21-year-old woman was seriously injured by a grizzly bear near Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, in July 2023. Authorities described the incident as a “defensive attack.” The victim was transported by helicopter to an area hospital.
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