Police forced to shoot bear that entered Vernon home

VERNON-On two consecutive days, June 7 and 8, the Vernon Township Police received two category one bear calls to the Barry Lakes and Highland Lakes area of town. In both of these cases the bears were reported to have been inside or attempting to gain entry to the residences in question. At the Barry Lakes location a Vernon Police officer a destroyed a young bear weighing about 100 pounds after it approached him in an aggressive manner. The bear was one of two with a large female. The animals had entered a woman's home, forcing her to retreat into her basement in fear. In recent weeks, two dogs have also been killed in the area by black bears. According to the Division of Fish and Wildlife, category one black bears constitute a threat to life and property. This category includes black bears involved in negative behavior as attacks resulting human injury, attacks or kills on domestic pets or livestock, or entries or attempted entries into property or motor vehicles. "This year we have had three entries that were reported," said Lieutenant Daniel Zill of the Vernon Township Police Department. "At this time of the year people like to leave their windows open. Not everyone has air and the bear has a very strong sense of smell. Food left out on counters or trash that is not properly secured will be attractive to them." While there is a local ordinance against feeding bears, and while residents in high bear areas such as Highland Lakes and Barry Lakes are strongly encouraged to invest in bear-proof trash cans, these precautions are only as strong as their weakest link. "The root of the problem is improper disposal of trash. Bears in Highland and Barry Lakes unfortunately have numerous opportunities to get into garbage, which is why they are frequenting these neighborhoods, said Lynda Smith, director of the B.E.A.R. group.  "Houses are fairly close together, with lots of garbage put out in plastic bags or cans without lids.  Widespread use of bear-resistant garbage cans would dramatically reduce bear traffic in these communities, thus preventing incidents." This advice is echoed by the Vernon Township Police Department, which has to respond to these calls. "While it seems ridiculous to ask people to close their windows and make sure that they don't leave any food on their countertops, it is not asking too much to ask them to make sure that their garbage is secured and bear-proof cans seem like the best option, especially in areas like Highland Lakes and Barry Lakes, where the bear population is high," said Zill. According to the B.E.A.R. group, over 70 percent of the bear complaints involve garbage or bird feeders. "These are completely preventable," said Smith. "In some of the recent incidents, the homeowners were bear-proofed, but their neighbors were not.  This has to be a communitywide effort to obtain the highest level of results," she added.