After a day-long chase that featured plenty of twists and turns, officials finally captured a 1-year-old bear in Vineland.
The animal was first spotted yesterday in a tree near the Happy Acres Trailer Park on the 1200 block of North East Boulevard. The animal ran off however before police could catch it.
On Friday the bear was spotted running across the street on Columbia Avenue. Officials contacted Fish & Wildlife Officials to help capture the animal.
Later during the day the bear climbed up another tree near East Landis and Howard Avenue as curious onlookers gathered to catch a glimpse.
At one point police say the bear jumped from the tree onto the roof of a nearby house.
The animal gave the crowd a thrill as it peeked around the corner and walked past bedroom windows. Tara Batson snapped some pictures.
"He seemed like he was really tired, thirsty and really hot," said Batson.
Police say it's highly unusual for a black bear to be in the Vineland area and that there were sightings of other bears Thursday night, though they were unable to find them today.
"He's obviously agitated and he just jumped off the roof and we've been advised by Fish and Game to have everybody because this crowd atmosphere is not helping him out," said Captain Tom Ulrich of the Vineland Police Department.
Around 5 p.m., officials were finally able to shoot the animal with a tranquilizer dart. The animal remained in the tree for a few minutes before he finally fell inside a safety net set up below.
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Police say the bear, which ended up weighing 238 pounds, is doing fine. Officials plan to release him into the wild later on.
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