On Friday, August 11, an 82-year-old Colorado woman woke in the middle of the night to her dog barking and a bear barging into her mudroom. The 100-pound, cinnamon-phase black bear leaped at her and scratched her legs before escaping through a ripped screen window, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) said in a recent press release.
Responding agents set a trap and are now searching for the bear in the Trinidad area, about 20 miles north of the state’s border with New Mexico, the state agency said. “Human health and safety always remain our top priority in any incident like this, regardless of how minor the injuries are,” area wildlife manager Mike Brown stated in a department press release. “CPW officers are doing everything we can to locate this bear. Luckily, the victim’s injuries consist of very minor scratches.”
The attack comes on the heels of another bear encounter in the same area about a week ago, in which a black bear bit a man on the arm as he was relaxing in a hammock. Investigators brought in dogs to search for that bear, but it’s not believed to be the same bear that bit the woman over the weekend.
On August 3, a Montana man shot and killed a mature boar black bear in his living room after it entered the home through a screened-in window. Officials said neighbors in the area “created a dangerous situation” by failing to secure garbage and other potential bear attractants.
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In Colorado, bears involved in attacks are classified as dangerous, and they’re routinely euthanized if captured. A bear that entered a Colorado Springs home several times back in April was put down. In that case, the homeowners were cited for feeding big game and warned about luring bears.
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