A Colorado family awoke to an unexpected breakfast guest in their kitchen when a bear wandered into their home and began eating.
According to Nerissa England, the family's mother, security camera footage shows the bear entering the kitchen on July 21 through a back door that had been left open due to the hot temperatures. England told Storyful that she initially thought a picture had fallen off the wall, but her 8-year-old daughter Zara Lee discovered the bear eating trash outside the kitchen door.
The bear then entered the kitchen, ate some Flintstones vitamins left on a table, and dragged a trash can outside to continue rummaging through it. Zara Lee and her father managed to scare the bear away by opening the door and making noise.
Bears have been wandering into people's homes across the United States in record numbers due to a dry winter that wiped out a significant portion of their diet. According to Reuters, bears have been drawn to human food due to their keen sense of smell, leading to a surge in bear deaths in some states.
The local bear population is expected to seek out food sources in the coming months, prompting England to take precautions by keeping the door shut until the bears enter hibernation.
NTC Report coverage is based on reporting from the original publisher.
View original reporting →
