Black Bear Sighting Reported in Roswell

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Roswell is the latest city in north metro Atlanta where a black bear has been seen by residents.

A black bear was seen around 8 p.m. Tuesday, June 23 by a resident, according to the Roswell Police Department’s Facebook page.

Roswell police said the bear “traveled through a couple of backyards” and made its way towards Willeo Creek and Pine Grove Road, which is close to the city’s border with East Cobb.

Roswell officers were able to snap a few photos of the bear in a backyard off Pine Grove Road before it ran into the woods, the agency said.

Just last week, a resident in Woodstock reported a bear in her backyard. Another bear was also seen last week in East Cobb.

Earlier this month, a Johns Creek police officer’s dash cam video captured a small bear running across Jones Bridge Road.

Within a matter of days, two reports of bears in the Norcross area were made by residents. A day after the second bear sighting, a black bear was found dead alongside Interstate 85 near Steve Reynolds Boulevard.

Another black bear made a brief appearance in the Estates at Hickory Mill neighborhood in Milton and another was seen around Dunwoody Club Drive and Mill Shire Lane in Dunwoody.

In late April, a driver struck and killed a black bear on S.R. 92 near Settlement Drive in southwest Cherokee County.

• See also: Milton Police Warn of Coyotes

So, what should you do if you come across a black bear in your yard or on your property? The Milton Police Department posted the following advice on its Facebook page:

• Call 911 immediately.
• Do not try to approach or feed the bears.
• Keep children and pets from approaching.
• Do not surround or corner a bear; give them plenty of space.
• Do not try to run from a bear – back slowly away and make lots of noise.

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources also recommends these tips to reduce changes of human-bear conflicts:

• Convert to bear-proof garbage containers, or secure garbage inside a garage or other enclosed area.
• Place garbage cans at the curb on the day of pick-up rather than the night before. If there is no curbside pick-up in the area, take garbage to the nearest disposal site as soon as possible.
• In some cases, installing an electric fence around garbage storage areas may be useful to prevent bears from accessing household garbage.
• Remove food scraps from grills and fire pits daily.
• Rinse food cans and wrappers before disposal. Keep garbage cans clean and deodorize them periodically.
• Concerning dumpsters, install bear-proof trash bins, attach reinforcing lids or install latch mechanisms.

Read more about black bears in Georgia by visiting DNR’s fact sheet on the subject.

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Photo credits: Roswell Police Department