Current:Home > Finance3 bears are captured after sneaking into a tatami factory as northern Japan faces a growing problem-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
3 bears are captured after sneaking into a tatami factory as northern Japan faces a growing problem
View Date:2025-01-13 02:58:34
TOKYO (AP) — Three bears that snuck into a tatami mat factory in northern Japan and holed up inside for nearly a day have been captured, according to town officials.
A patrolling town official spotted the bears, believed to be a parent and two cubs, as they walked into a tatami factory Wednesday morning in Misato, a town in Akita prefecture, where there’s been a growing number of reported bear attacks in or near residential areas.
An owner of the tatami factory said he saw the bears walking outside but never thought they would come inside.
Town officials and police officers rushed to the site, each wearing a helmet and carrying a shield, and kept watch. Local hunters used fire crackers to try to scare the intruders out, without success. They later set up a pair of cages at the entrance of the tatami factory and waited overnight.
On Thursday morning, the bears were trapped in cages, two cubs in one and the adult in another. Television footage showed the cages being taken out of the factory and placed on a pickup truck with a crane.
Misato issued an urgent message later Thursday to residents that all three bears had been captured. Media reports said the bears were later killed for fear that they would return to town and pose harm again if released.
Akita has logged a record 30 cases of bear attacks on people in 2023 alone, increasingly in residential areas. Experts say they come down from forests looking for food due to a scarcity of acorns, their staple food. Officials warned residents not to leave garbage outside, and advised hikers to carry bells to make noise, and use anti-bear spray or lie flat face-down in case of an encounter with bears.
veryGood! (51242)
Related
- She was found dead while hitchhiking in 1974. An arrest has finally been made.
- Ex-Alabama officer agrees to plead guilty to planting drugs before sham traffic stop
- Could Alex Murdaugh get new trial for South Carolina murders of wife and son?
- ROKOS CAPITAL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD (RCM) Introduction
- Wisconsin’s high court to hear oral arguments on whether an 1849 abortion ban remains valid
- Detroit judge who had teen handcuffed for sleeping temporarily removed from his docket
- Florida school psychologist charged with possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material
- New California laws aim to reduce smash-and-grab robberies, car thefts and shoplifting
- Watch out, Temu: Amazon Haul, Amazon's new discount store, is coming for the holidays
- Kansas will pay $50,000 to settle a suit over a transgender Highway Patrol employee’s firing
Ranking
- Firefighters make progress, but Southern California wildfire rages on
- Asteroids safely fly by Earth all the time. Here’s why scientists are watching Apophis.
- What to watch: Facehugging 101 with 'Alien: Romulus'
- Amid Matthew Perry arrests, should doctors be blamed for overdose deaths?
- Shaboozey to headline halftime show of Lions-Bears game on Thanksgiving
- Iowa proposes summer grocery boxes as alternative to direct cash payments for low-income families
- Fubo convinces judge to block Disney sports streaming service ahead of NFL kickoff
- Babe Ruth jersey could sell for record-breaking $30 million at auction
Recommendation
-
Chris Wallace will leave CNN 3 years after defecting from 'Fox News Sunday'
-
Jordan Chiles breaks silence on Olympic bronze medal controversy: 'Feels unjust'
-
How Rumer Willis Is Doing Motherhood Her Way
-
Everything at Old Navy Is 40% off! Build Your Fall Fit with $20 Jeans, $7 Tops, $17 Dresses & More
-
Sister Wives’ Christine Brown Shares Glimpse Into Honeymoon One Year After Marrying David Woolley
-
Harvard and graduate students settle sexual harassment lawsuit
-
Dennis Quaid talks political correctness in Hollywood: 'Warned to keep your mouth shut'
-
Rhode Island files lawsuit against 13 companies that worked on troubled Washington Bridge