ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST – Imagine finding a 525-pound bear under your home!
This enormous adult male black bear was found in the crawlspace of a house in Altadena, California. The family had evacuated due to the Eaton Fire, which swept through much of the area.
The utility company found the bear while trying to restore power to the house and community. They called the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to get the bear out.
Wildlife experts couldn’t tranquilize the bear because it was just too big and the crawlspace was too small. So, the CDFW wildlife experts used a trap near the crawlspace opening, which worked within minutes! The bear was given a health assessment, collared with a GPS device, and safely released in the Angeles National Forest.
The electricity is back on for the homeowner, and the crawlspace has been boarded up and bear-proofed.
“In the foothills of bear country, it’s important to close crawlspaces with bear-proof material in advance of winter months to discourage bears from denning and damaging property,” said the CDFW.
National Park News
