Hrishikesh Koloth, a 27-year-old mixed martial arts fighter from Kerala, India, was killed by a black bear on May 8, 2026, while working a contract job at a remote uranium exploration site in northern Saskatchewan, his family and Canadian officials confirmed.
The attack happened at the Zoo Bay property operated by Vancouver-based UraniumX Discovery Corp., located near Nordbye Lake — roughly 850 kilometers (or roughly 528.2 miles) northeast of Saskatoon and about 50 miles northeast of Points North Landing. A civilian on site shot and killed the bear before officers arrived, Saskatchewan’s provincial Ministry of Community Safety confirmed.
Koloth had moved to Canada in 2023 and was living in Penticton, British Columbia, with his older brother, Arjun Koloth. He carried an undefeated three-0 amateur record in wrestling/submission grappling and trained at Skoden Martial Arts in Penticton. The mining contract was temporary work — his real goal was the UFC.
A 4 a.m. Knock at the Door
At 4 a.m. PDT, an officer with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrived at Arjun’s Penticton home with the news. Hrishikesh had been working as a technician at the isolated site when the bear attacked. Details about the sequence of events at the camp have not been publicly released.
Arjun is now in Kerala for his brother’s funeral and to be with the rest of his family.
“I want him to be remembered for what he does. Innocent heart, fighter’s soul. Warrior,” he said. “And I’d just like to say he fought [the] bear. That’s all … bear didn’t attack him. He attacked the bear.”
A Fighter’s Dream Cut Short
Koloth had trained in martial arts for over a decade — first in India and then in Canada. He was set to begin a new job as a boxing coach in Vancouver in June.
“That was his dream. That’s why he came here,” Arjun told CBC News in an interview published May 27, 2026. “He wanted to fight in the UFC.”
Arjun described his younger brother as humble, fearless and fiercely devoted to family — a son who spoiled his parents and wanted to give them everything. He recalled a fighter who never flinched at unfavorable matchups or short notice. Two days to prepare? Fine. A heavier opponent? Didn’t matter. Win or lose, he wanted in.
Arjun said his brother viewed work as just a means to an end, and the end was to fight. The gym where he trained in Penticton was a second family to him.
Company Response and Investigation
UraniumX temporarily shut down its field operations in the area as authorities investigated. The animal was transported to the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon for a necropsy.
“The safety and well-being of our employees, contractors, and all personnel working on our projects is, and will always remain, our highest priority,” the company said in a statement. “We commend the rapid response of our on-site team, service providers, and emergency responders who attended the scene.”
A Rare but Devastating Encounter
This marks only the fourth fatal bear attack in Saskatchewan’s recorded history. The last occurred in 2020, when a woman was killed near her family’s cabin north of Buffalo Narrows. The remote region of central Saskatchewan where Koloth died is home to both black bears and grizzly bears, but fatal encounters with humans are uncommon.
The Saskatchewan government issued a reminder about bear safety on the day of Koloth’s death, warning that campsites and homes near forested areas can quickly become hunting grounds for bears searching for food.
“Black bears are intelligent and ruled by their stomachs,” the agency said. “Limiting attractants is the most effective way to reduce these interactions.”
For Arjun, the corporate condolences and statistical rarity of the attack offer little. What lingers is a younger brother who crossed an ocean to chase a fight career, who treated every opponent the same regardless of weight or notice, and whose ambitions were just beginning to take shape when a remote stretch of Saskatchewan bush ended them.
“Everybody had high hopes on him,” Arjun said. “It shouldn’t have been like this.”
