Bear Caught On Camera Prowling Oakley Neighborhood
OAKLEY (KPIX 5) – Residents in a neighborhood in Oakley were stunned after a bear was spotted roaming through the Eastern Contra Costa County community early Friday morning.
Numerous surveillance videos spotted the bear walking along the sidewalk and in the middle of the street in the area of East Cypress Road near Delta Vista Middle School. The bear tripped multiple motion sensors and when neighbors checked their surveillance videos, they couldn't believe it was a bear cruising around.
"He walked on the sidewalk, went down the grass and then over to the neighbors to take a little stroll," said Shirley Erdmann, who lives in the city's Cypress Grove neighborhood.
"I couldn't believe it, when it was a bear," said Erdmann, who is from a part of the country where bear sightings are more common.
"I can't imagine a bear here in town because I'm from Montana. And where we lived, he had bears all the time come through," she went on to say.
Friday's bear sighting in the East Bay comes a few weeks after another bear was spotted in the North Bay community of San Anselmo. In that sighting, the bear was perched in a tree for hours before running back into the wild.
Officials said the bear in the San Anselmo sighting was a juvenile and was likely looking for food.
Quinn, a four-year-old who also lives in the neighborhood, has quite a story to tell. Video showed the bear hanging out in front of her home for a while, possibly attracted to the water coming from the sprinkler.
When asked where the bear's home was, the 4-year-old told KPIX 5's Juliette Goodrich, "It's in the forest."
The bear has not been seen in the community since early Friday morning. If you encounter the bear, authorities urge not to approach the animal, stay at least 100 yards away and to call 911.