Law enforcement and California Department of Fish and Wildlife officials spent the day Wednesday trying to get a black bear back into its habitat after it wandered into a La Cañada Flintridge neighborhood and cooled off in a swimming pool Wednesday morning.
After the dip in the pool, the bear climbed high up into a pine tree for an afternoon nap, aerial video from Sky5 showed.
Wardens waited all afternoon for the bear to come back down, which she did around 6:30 p.m. She then appeared to be on her way back into the nearby hills.
The 250-pound female bear was first spotted about 10:30 a.m. at a YMCA near Foothill Boulevard and the 2 Freeway, said Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Randy Tuinstra.
The Pasadena Police Department was also on scene, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Andrew Hughan, a spokesman for Fish and Wildlife, told the Times that wardens were trying to chase the bear back into the hills.
“It’s a wily little fellow,” Hughan said.
Officials do not think the bear is aggressive and is believed to be about 3 years old.
“The bear is terrified,” Hughan told the Times. “It’s just terrified of the noises, the police cars, the helicopters. … We want people to back off.”
Several spectators lined the street to catch glimpses of the bear and to make sure it wasn’t injured.
The bear had previously been walking in a front yard in the neighborhood before it walked up steps to a home and came upon a fence.
The bear then wandered into a back yard of another home at the end of Jarvis Avenue and took a dip in the pool, aerial video showed.
About 11:15 a.m. the bear was seen climbing a pine tree in the area. As of 6 p.m., she remained napping in the tree.
In a tweet, the Department of Fish and Wildlife said there was “no reason to shoot or dart” the bear.
Wardens on scene have bean-bag guns in case the bear makes its way toward spectators, but officials don’t anticipate having to use them.
About 1:45 p.m. the agency tweeted that the bear was a yard away from open space, “so we’re hopeful for a quick scamper home soon.”
The same bear had apparently be spotted in Pasadena over Memorial Day weekend.
Check back here for updates on this developing story.
