'Food-conditioned bear' prompts closure of campground, trail near Whistler
Multiple reports of aggressive behaviour from what conservation officers are calling a "food-conditioned bear" has led to the closure of a campground and trail near a B.C. resort town.
In a post online Tuesday, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service said both the Cheakamus Lake Trail and the Cheakamus Lake Campground near Whistler are closed until June 22. Normally, the Cheakamus Lake Campground has 10 spots available for reservations.
The agency says "a number of incidences" were reported.
"Please remember it is everyone’s responsibility to store food and essentials appropriately in the backcountry," the BCCOS said online. "Do not be the reason why a bear is destroyed!"
The BCCOS says campers should store all wildlife attractants – like food and scented items – in a vehicle, trailer, bear cache or bear hang.
Already this spring, multiple bear attacks have been reported in the province.
Last week, a man was left with serious injuries after being attacked by a bear at a remote worksite north of Prince George.
About two weeks ago, conservation officers in North Vancouver closed a trail after a hiker was reportedly swatted at by a black bear. The trail eventually reopened, though the bear was not located "despite extensive efforts."
Earlier in May, a man was attacked by a grizzly bear on his property in the Southern Interior. In that instance, one of two dogs ran into the bush and likely provoked the bear that lunged at the man in the community of Malakwa, conservation officers said at the time.
In the first five months of the year, the BCCOS received 3,537 calls about black bears, according to provincial data. Of those, about 72 per cent – or 2,564 – were made in May alone. From January through May, officers responded to 483 of those calls.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.