A black bear spotted near an elementary school in Utah was safely removed.
Black Bear Spotted Near Utah Elementary School Safely Removed
A black bear was spotted last month strolling near an elementary school in Moab City, Utah.
Though law enforcement lost sight of the bear temporarily, they were fortunately able to capture it later that same day.
There were no incidents involving the bear, which has since been safely released into the wild.
Police captured and released a black bear after it was found roaming near an elementary school in Moab City, Utah.
"A black bear was sighted at approximately 02:15 a.m. at 339 McGill Blvd," the Moab City Police Department wrote on Facebook at the time. "A Grand County deputy responded and located the bear behind HMK Elementary School and then saw the bear go into a nearby backyard at Cliffview. The bear moved on and its location is unknown at this time. The Utah Division of Wildlife was notified and will be looking for the bear. If you spot it, please don't approach. Call Utah DWR in Price at 435-613-3700 to report any sightings, or contact local law enforcement dispatch at 435-259-8115. There appears to be no danger at this time."
A bear was found near an elementary school in Moab City, Utah.
Hours later, the local police department was able to reassure the public with a positive update.
"The bear has been located and captured," they wrote. "The bear was located by a resident on Chinle Ave. around 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 18. DNR responded from Monticello and successfully sedated her in a tree, causing her to fall into an adjacent yard. A biologist estimated her age to be around 9 years old, and she will be released Friday, Sept. 19 in the Abajo Mountains."
Utah's mountains and canyons are a natural habitat for black bears.
Commenters on the police's Facebook post pointed out that the bear was probably looking for food.
"Aw, he's hungry, I hope that he heads out of town, poor bear," said one person.
Meanwhile, others had cutesy jokes to share.
"He’s just lookin' for a picanic [sic] basket boo boo!" somebody wrote.
"he's just looking for the bear necessities 😃," wrote someone else.
There are thousands of black bears in Utah.
According to Wild Aware Utah, thousands of black bears live in the mountains and forests of the state. Black bears are the only species of bear to be found in Utah.
The resource explains that if you live in an area where there may be black bears or if you are camping in bears' natural habitat, you should take a number of precautions such as disposing of trash securely, removing any food from places bears could scavenge for it, installing bear deterrents and creating escape routes for bears so that they aren't cornered in an area close to you.
Visit the Wild Aware Utah website for more information.