Monday, December 12, 2011

Bear in Downtown Vancouver

This afternoon we had one of those ‘we know we’re not in England anymore’ moments when a black bear was spotted in Downtown Vancouver.  While bear sightings are not very unusual here in North Vancouver, to see one in the centre of the city is extremely rare. 

It is believed the bear had found it’s way into a dumpster in the underground parking garage of the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, right in the heart of Downtown.  The dumpster was collected by a garbage truck when someone spotted the bear as the garbage truck pulled away.  UPDATE:  Conservation officers now say they think the bear climbed into the truck when it was parked on the North Shore and hitched a ride into Downtown.

A tranquiliser dart was shot into the bear and conservation officers and the VPD had to wait for a couple minutes for the sedative to take effect.  A brave and brilliant conservation officer then jumps up onto the back of the truck to catch the bear as he eventually falls asleep, before dropping him into a net held by some VPD officers.  Not a problem many Oxford police officers have had to deal with !

Conservation officers say they have tagged it and will release the 18 month old boy back into the wild in the Squamish Estuary tomorrow.

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