Need to know
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After 37 days in a crawl space under a house, a bear was finally removed
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The homeowner threatened to sue the California Department of Fish and Wildlife after failing to remove the 550-lb. animal
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BEAR League moved in and the organization’s first responders were able to get under the house and out of the property.
The bear has finally been evicted after allegedly living on the homeowner’s property for over a month.
On Thursday, January 8, the BEAR League, a non-profit animal organization, revealed in a post on Facebook that they were able to help get the animal out of space.
People previously reported that Altadena resident Kenneth Johnson threatened to sue the California Department of Fish and Wildlife after they failed to remove the 550-lb. A bear living under his house. The bear was staying there from November 30 to 37 days New York Post. It was finally removed on Tuesday, January 6, per Fox News.
“A Southern California homeowner had a large bear living under his home for over a month before reaching out to BEAR League for help,” BEAR League wrote on Facebook. “Estimated at over 500 pounds, the bear barely fit into the crawlspace and caused extensive damage to the home’s heating ducts.”
Toogee Sielsch via Storyful
A bear living under a California house
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The organization added, “The homeowner turned off gas service before Christmas due to concerns that the gas line may have been damaged.”
“After an earlier removal attempt by state wildlife officials failed, BEAR League first responders Scott and Dave traveled to the Los Angeles area to assist,” the organization continued. “Scott, one of our most experienced responders, crawled under the house – fully aware the bear was still there – to follow him and encourage him to get out of the crawl space opening.”
The BEAR League also revealed that they had “put electrical insulation mats on loan to give the homeowner time to make repairs and to secure the crawlspace to prevent another visit.”
PEOPLE has reached out to the BEAR League and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife for comment.
In the video shared by the organization, the bear can be seen coming out of the hole after hearing a loud noise. “Go, go, go, go,” someone can be heard saying in the background. “He’s out!”
The clip captured the bear retreating before running away again, trying to move the electric mat.
“I can hear him down there, and it’s really scary when you hear the banging and crushing and scratching and stuff … he’s not happy,” the homeowner told KABC.
Addressing Johnson’s legal threat against the wildlife department, Dave Fleischman of the BEAR League said, “I see Ken potentially looking at a lawsuit against the California Department of Fish and Wildlife because they left him high and dry and fended for himself with this bear under the house.”
Toogee Sielsch via Storyful
A bear living under a California house
“He looked very comfortable when we walked up, I’ll say that,” Fleischmann told the outlet. “He was more than relieved, and I’d say surprised, how quickly we were able to do it, because it was literally less than 10 minutes from when Scott started crawling under the house to when the bear came out.”
Johnson also created a GoFundMe page to raise money to repair the damage caused by the bear. “As soon as the Eaton fire escaped, I lost my job, and shortly after that the bear started tearing into the structure of my house,” he wrote.
“I have video footage of the gas pipe twisting, which created an extremely dangerous situation and forced me to shut off my utilities to be safe,” the homeowner continued.
“I reached out for help, but the state has refused to get involved, leaving me fully responsible for the cost of the removal,” Johnson added. “Commercial traps, security measures, and maintenance are incredibly expensive, and I’m forced to pay for it all myself while I’m unemployed.”
As of Friday, January 9, Johnson has raised $2,112.
Read the original article on People
