Roving bear frightens Fredericton residents

People in a Fredericton mini-home park are frightened because a large black bear has been visiting their neighbourhood — even in the middle of the day.

They say the bear has become unafraid of humans, and they want the park owner to put a fence up to keep the bear in the woods and out of their backyards.

The provincial Department of Natural Resources has set up a bear trap, but so far, it hasn't captured the roving black bear. It did catch two bears earlier this year.

Janet Taylor, who lives on Brookside Drive in the mini-home park, said she's glad she has her dog for protection.

"At one o'clock in the morning, I was out to let my dog do her business, and the bear was there. She [the dog] started snorting and barking, and the bear took off," Taylor said Friday.

Kevin Crag, a biologist with Natural Resources, said people should take special care in disposing of their garbage.

"What we advise people to do is not to put their garbage out at curbside until the actual morning of garbage pickup," he said Friday.

"If they can store it in a garage, or lock it in the trunk of a car, and certainly odourous materials like meat scraps that they can put in the freezer until the time of pickup to reduce the odour, that's advisable."

Residents have been chaining their garbage bins shut, but the bear was able to haul one into nearby woods and break into it.

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The New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources has set up a bear trap in a Fredericton mini-home park where a large black bear has been a regular visitor