THUNDER BAY – Maija Sarkka wasn’t expecting to see a bear wandering down the backyard laneway behind her Rupert Street home.
At first, she wasn’t sure what she saw on Thursday morning.
“I was doing dishes in my kitchen and I could see the back lane out my kitchen window. I saw something large and black running in the back lane,” she said.
“It looked like it was larger than a dog. I figured it must be a bear. Somebody’s dog started barking and the bear got startled and jumped over the fence into my yard.”
Moments later the bruin, a two-year-old male, dug his claws into an evergreen tree at the back of the yard and hoisted his way up under cover of a canopy of branches.
That’s when the waiting game began.
Thunder Bay Police were initially called to secure the yard and provide protection should the bear manage to make its way out of the tree.
“They gave me animal services number, but they didn’t answer. I guess some of the other neighbours had been calling and the police showed up,” Sarkka said.
The Ministry of Natural Resources were also called in, ultimately tranquilizing the animal, laying out a mat for it to land on when it eventually fell from its perch.
Police helped carry the sleeping bear on a stretcher to a waiting MNR cage.
Sarkka said she’s glad it worked out for the bear and for the neighbourhood itself. It’s a good reminder of just how close the city is to the wilderness.
“There are children and elderly people and people who walk and run. So I think people should be aware that (bears) are coming into town,” she said.
“None of the neighbours wanted to have it shot, so hopefully they can relocate it safely.”
