Bear Stuck In Napa Tree Is Rescued In Group Effort, Police Say

NAPA, CA — All ended well for a bear which got itself into a precarious situation Friday in Napa as it climbed higher and higher up a tree, authorities said. The Napa Police Department was initially informed about the bear's presence in the city at about 5 p.m. Friday when a resident in the 2700 block of Beard Road called and said the animal was on their property, according to Napa police Sgt. Peter Piersig.

Napa County Animal Control officers responded, confirmed it was a bear and requested assistance from Napa police, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the county trapper.

Before the bear could be trapped, however, it fled to a tree on the east side of Pinecrest Apartments on Cooper Court near Pueblo Avenue, Piersig said.

"The bear remained a couple of stories up in the tree which drew the attention of the multiple residents and other spectators," Piersig said. "Attempts were made to keep people away so the bear could come down, but the crowd was too big and rowdy. A curious spectator approached from an adjacent property which caused the bear to climb higher in the tree."

As nightfall was setting in, a biologist and a warden from California Fish and Wildlife arrived at the scene.

"Due to safety concerns of the multiple people in the area, the decision was made to tranquilize the bear and remove it from the area," Piersig said. "Because it was dark and the bear had gone higher in the tree, the Napa Fire Department responded with their ladder truck."

The fish-and-wildlife biologist climbed the fire department's ladder and, using a tranquilizer dart, temporarily put the animal to sleep.

As the bear fell out of the tree, its fall was lessened by multiple branches and by an aluminum shed it fell onto — destroying the shed — Piersig said.

"The bear was asleep, but breathing, and was transported by the F&W biologist," Piersig said.

Fish and Wildlife later reported the bear woke up around 1:30 a.m. and appeared fine, so it was released into the wild, the sergeant said.

"It is unknown how or when the bear got to Beard Road," Piersig said.

Conrad Jones of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife agreed, calling it a "mystery" as to why the bear ended up within Napa city limits.

"We can't know for sure," said Jones, who climbed Napa Fire Department's ladder Friday night and administered the tranquilizer dart.

Jones, a senior environmental scientist supervisor, said he doesn't think the bear was hungry or thirsty. Rather, it may have been something territorial among other bears in the area that drove the bear into town, he said. The bear likely wandered into town overnight when it was quiet and most of Napa was sleeping, he said.

The bear, full grown and weighing between 210 and 220 pounds, was taken to the regional office in Fairfield where it was transferred to a safer mode of transportation. Jones and co-workers then transported the bear to California Department of Fish and Wildlife land outside of the Napa Valley, where it was released back into the wild.

The bear was observed and did not appear to have suffered any broken bones or limbs in the fall.

Jones, who also administered the tranquilizer dart on a mountain lion in April near Macy's in Santa Rosa, said Friday was the first time he has climbed a fire department ladder.

With the crowd gathered in Napa, Jones said he had to be very careful about aiming the dart.

"We tried to get as wide of a perimeter as we could get. The dart will put a bear to sleep, but will kill a human," Jones said.

"The fire guys were a huge help," said Jones, who was given an impromptu safety training before ascending the ladder. "Once up, I was in communication with the guy who operates the ladder; he was awesome in demeanor and was extremely professional."

Anyone who encounters a bear, a mountain lion or other wildlife can submit an online Wildlife Incident Report, Jones said.