{"id":678037,"date":"2026-05-18T18:52:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T18:52:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/678037\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T18:52:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T18:52:08","slug":"bears-are-awake-and-theyre-hungry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/678037\/","title":{"rendered":"Bears are awake and they’re hungry!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Keep pic-a-nic baskets under guard, bears<\/a>\u00a0are awake and they’re hungry.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Here’s what the city<\/a>\u00a0says to do if you encounter a bear:<\/p>\n

Non-Emergencies<\/p>\n

Call the toll-free Bear Wise reporting line (available 24\/7) at 1-866-514-2327<\/a> if a bear:<\/p>\n


\n\troams around or checks garbage cans
\n\tbreaks into a shed where garbage or food is stored
\n\tis in a tree
\n\tpulls down a bird feeder or knocks over a barbecue
\n\tmoves through a backyard or field but does not linger <\/p>\n

Emergencies<\/p>\n

Call 911 or your local police if a bear poses an immediate threat to personal safety and exhibits threatening or aggressive behaviour, such as:<\/p>\n


\n\tenters a school yard when school is in session
\n\tstalks people and lingers at the site
\n\tenters or tries to enter a residence
\n\twanders into a public gathering
\n\tkills livestock\/pets and lingers at the site <\/p>\n

The OPP has\u00a0issued several safety tips:<\/p>\n


\n\tKeep all doors and ground\u2011level windows closed and locked, especially during evening and overnight hours.
\n\tStore garbage securely and avoid placing bins outside if they contain food scraps.
\n\tPlace garbage out only on collection day, not the night before.
\n\tRemove bird feeders during bear season, as seeds and suet attract wildlife.
\n\tDo not leave pet food outdoors.
\n\tClean barbecues after each use to remove grease and food residue.
\n\tPick ripe fruit from trees and remove fallen fruit from the ground.
\n\tKeep compost in a secure, bear\u2011resistant container.
\n\tMaintain a tidy yard free of food waste or strong food scents. <\/p>\n

Bears should never be approached, and immediate threats to public safety should be called into 911. Non-emergency bear concerns can be called into the Bear Wise<\/a> reporting line at 1\u2011866\u2011514\u20112327<\/a>, which operates from April 1 to Nov. 30 and is available 24\/7.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Keep pic-a-nic baskets under guard, bears\u00a0are awake and they’re hungry.\u00a0 Here’s what the city\u00a0says to do if you…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":678038,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[49,48,249213,66,323],"class_list":["post-678037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-sault-ste-marie-bears","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=678037"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678037\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=678037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=678037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=678037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}