National

6 times bears stumbled upon people. Take a look at the stories

Stories by Real-Time News journalists, with AI summarization

Bears are showing up more often where people live, work, and play. In Corvallis, Oregon, a black bear caused a stir as it roamed downtown and two college campuses, while officials urged residents not to approach the animal. Near Lake Norman, another black bear swam across busy recreational beaches, surprising locals.

Take a look at the stories below.

A black bear was captured on camera running across a street April 21 in Corvallis, Oregon. It was then seen a few more times in the city. Corvallis Police Department

NO. 1: FURRY VISITOR GAVE AN OREGON CITY AN ‘UNEXPECTED SURPRISE.’ SEE IT WANDER THE STREETS

“56 years living in Corvallis, and this is definitely a first.” | Published April 25, 2024 | Read Full Story by Helena Wegner

A person spotted a yearling bear cub on their morning walk near the Steamboat Springs ski resort — and then felt a blow from behind that knocked them to the ground. Photo by Luis Olmos via Unsplash

NO. 2: PERSON SEES BEAR CUB ON WALK — THEN FEELS SWIPE FROM BEHIND, COLORADO OFFICIALS SAY

The blow knocked them to the ground, officials said. | Published May 22, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

A disabled Army Reserve veteran played dead as a grizzly (not the one pictured here) mauled him in Grand Teton. Photo by Zdeněk Macháček via Unsplash

NO. 3: VETERAN PLAYED DEAD AS GRIZZLY MAULED HIM IN GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, OFFICIALS SAY

“It was the most violent thing I have ever experienced.” | Published May 24, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

Neighbors reported a small black bear near several Lake Norman coves and the popular Ramsey Creek Park swimming beach in Cornelius. By Diamond Vences| Joe Marusak

NO. 4: NEIGHBORS SPOT BLACK BEAR SWIMMING NEAR POPULAR LAKE NORMAN BEACH, PROMPTING ALERTS

“Never thought I’d see a bear in Denver (N.C.), let alone my own front yard,” resident Pam Jarvis said. | Published May 25, 2024 | Read Full Story by Joe Marusak

A grizzly bear was shot and killed after it broke into multiple Montana homes almost every night for nearly two months — sometimes while residents were inside, officials said. Screenshot of Cowboy State Daily's video on Youtube

NO. 5: GRIZZLY SHOT IN RIVER AFTER BREAKING INTO MULTIPLE HOMES IN MONTANA, OFFICIALS SAY

The bear was “terrorizing” residents near Yellowstone National Park for almost two months. | Published July 19, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

A Montana creek was closed to the public after a grizzly (not the one pictured) charged at two anglers. Photo by Taylor Wright via Unsplash

NO. 6: GRIZZLY CHARGES AT PAIR FISHING IN MONTANA CREEK, OFFICIALS SAY. ONE SHOT AT IT

The animal is federally protected. | Published April 25, 2025 | Read Full Story by Helena Wegner

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.