Home Break-Ins, Dumpster Diving: Hungry Bears On The Prowl In Colorado
(CBS4) - Black bears are prowling for food across Colorado right now, and in two different instances late this week they got into trouble when they tried to get into human food. One situation happened in Buelah, west of Pueblo, and the other happened in Jefferson County.
The Jefferson County Sheriff's office on Thursday shared video of wildlife officers helping a mama bear get reunited with her three cubs who went into a dumpster looking for food and got trapped when the lid closed on them. The mother was unable to get them out and appeared very stressed, so officers used a chair to help the cubs climb out.
You know you might be a deputy in Colorado when you respond to a bear-y good call to help a momma bear whose cubs trapped themselves in a dumpster. We were happy to help reunite this family & hope the story brings a smile to your face #jeffco #TheMostColoradoThing #Colorado pic.twitter.com/0ZJB9rhKML
— Jeffco Sheriff (@jeffcosheriffco) July 30, 2020
The operation took place in the middle of the night, and the bears can be heard on the video screeching with concern over their predicament. No one was hurt during the rescue effort.
In Buelah on Friday, a bear climbed through the open window of a home at 2 a.m. and came face-to-face with the homeowner in her hallway. The 71-year-old woman quickly locked herself in her bedroom and phoned for help. The bear got away after the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office said it "helped himself to her watermelon," and it was gone by the time authorities arrived.
Get more information on bear-proofing your home and property on a special section of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife website.