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SALT LAKE CITY — Police asked some residents to remain inside their homes Wednesday while officers and crews from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources removed a bear from a tree.
The bear fell from the tree after crews tranquilized it around 10:40 a.m. "Crews were working to set up a mechanism to prevent the bear from hitting the ground when it fell," the Salt Lake City Police Department said. Biologists with the Division of Wildlife Resources were on-hand to evaluate the bear's condition.
The bear was first spotted in the tree around 8:30 a.m.
"He came right through our yard this morning — in fact, our dog was going crazy this morning and we didn't know why," resident Josh Peterman said.
Residents gathered outside to watch while police roped off the area and prepped to bring the bear safely down. Scott Root with the Division of Wildlife Resources said bears come out of hibernation about mid-March and there could be various reasons the bear is in the valley.
"Kind of a surprise to get a black bear here in June as far as why this bear is here — several possible reasons it could have been kicked out of a territory by another male bear. My hunch is that these hills around us are pretty yellow and dry and sometimes bears look for water or lush vegetation," Root said. "That could be a definite reason why it's down here."
Anyone living on Reed Avenue, between 300 West and Wall Street, was asked to remain inside their homes while crews were at the scene. Many residents gathered outside of the roped-off area to watch.
"Pretty surprising to see a bear this far down out of the mountains because we're close to the foothills but I'm guessing he's from City Creek," Peterman said.
The @UtahDWR tranquilized the bear, and as crews were getting in position with the bucket truck, and ladder it fell out of the tree.
— Derek Petersen (@Derek_Photog) June 5, 2024
Photo courtesy Meghan Thackery pic.twitter.com/1pVigzDjAe
"The plan is we'll tranquilize it and give it a health assessment and, if it's in good health, we'll relocate it," Root said.
The bear was hit with a tranquilizer twice before it ultimately fell.
Root said the bear is estimated to be 2 to 3 years old. The bear will get a health assessment and would be released later in the day.
