The Niigata Prefectural Government issued a special warning Monday about wild bear encounters, a day after a woman died from injuries sustained in an attack when she was working on a farm earlier in the month.

Takako Saito, a 73-year-old resident of Sekikawa village, some 250 kilometers north of Tokyo, died Sunday — the first death resulting from a bear attack in the prefecture since October 2001. She was found by a neighbor lying unconscious on her property and bleeding heavily from her head and face on Oct. 1.

Local officials and police will increase patrols while urging residents to be extra vigilant by handing out flyers with recommendations about bear safety.