Mama Bear and Her 3 Cubs Rescued After Getting Trapped in a California Water Tank for More Than 12 Hours
One of the three cubs managed to escape on its own before rescuers arrived and has since been reunited with its family
Credit: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
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A mother bear and her three cubs were rescued from a California water tank after being trapped inside for 12 hours
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Firefighters and wildlife officials drained the tank and cut a large opening into it to help the bears escape
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The rescue, dubbed "Operation Care Bear," is one of several recent incidents involving bears stuck in water infrastructure
A mother bear and her three cubs are safe after a marathon rescue freed them from a California water tank where they'd been trapped for more than 12 hours.
Officials said the bears appeared to have squeezed through a 1-foot-wide opening in the concrete structure (likely seeking water during hot, humid weather) and then couldn't get back out. The Los Angeles County Fire Department identified the spot as a cistern at Marshall Canyon County Park, near Claremont Wilderness Park's 5-Mile Loop Trail.
According to ABC7 , the bears became stuck inside a large water storage tank in La Verne, Calif., on Saturday, Aug. 29, prompting a major response from firefighters and wildlife officials. First responders nicknamed the effort "Operation Care Bear." Video shared online by on-site crews shows the animals finally emerging from the tank one by one.
Rescuers around a water tank, working to help the bears trapped inside Credit: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Residents first spotted the bears around 8 a.m. "We climbed up top, and there's a small hole and right away we see a bear staring at us, kind of holding on to the walls because it was full of water," one local told the outlet.
Tyler Christensen, who recorded a video of the bears stuck inside the tank, described the animals. "I just stuck my head in the hole. One was all tucked up on the top," he said. "They were just scared to death."
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) drained water from the tank to prevent the bears from drowning before firefighters from La Verne and Los Angeles County stepped in. Because the existing hole was too small, crews used a saw to cut a larger opening and lowered a ladder inside to give the animals an easy way out.
Getting them to climb it took patience. "They were exhausted, so it took a few minutes for the first cub to come out, then the second cub got out, and then finally the mother," said Keith Navarre of the Los Angeles County Fire Department. One of the three cubs had escaped on its own before rescuers arrived and has since been reunited with its family.
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"We are happy to report Mama Bear and her three cubs made it out safely," the L.A. County Fire Department wrote on Facebook , crediting its Urban Search and Rescue team.
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