Bear damages garage in Port Coquitlam

Luckily, the homeowner was inside the house when this bear got itself trapped in their garage. Eventually, RCMP coaxed the bear out, but not before it did some serious damage to the front of the home. A homeowner in Port Coquitlam with quite the wake up call. RCMP say they responded to a call at 6:00 AM. Thursday morning of a bear that had trapped itself inside a garage, the determined animal leaving plenty of damage to the home's exterior as it tried to escape. Eventually, the officers were able to open a side door, which then enabled the bear to escape out of and return to the nearby green space. The bear didn't have to go far to find the green space, as the neighborhood backs right onto it. Is on way and came across here. The Val Jassik family lives right next door to the damaged home. They say bear encounters in the area have increased in the past five years. Claw Marks and how it's cracked within from them just prying. Later in the day, they saw a conservation officer drop this bear trap off in their neighbor's backyard. We requested an interview with BC Conservation Officer Service, but no one was available by deadline. We have a number of bears kind of from spring to fall. Trekking around so they may take away one that caused a problem, but I'm sure there'll be more coming back in Port Moody at the end of April, a hungry bear tore through this garage door looking for food. And back in November, this unlocked van in Port Moody was ripped to shreds by a curious bear. Speaking with others in Poco, it seemed everyone had a bare story to tell. After Halloween. My mom early in the morning went to put out the a pumpkin into the green waste and she went out and the bear actually chased her back up the driveway and she had to run back and actually drop the pumpkin and ran into the house. The bear in this latest incident is believed to have entered through an open side door. Coquitlam RCMP reminding folks to make sure their home, car and garbage cans stay locked to avoid a similar outcome. Most of the people I spoke with today weren't surprised by the uptick in bear encounters as construction continues to shrink their habitat across the province. In April, the BC Conservation Conservation Service received 872 black bear calls, which is up over 200 calls from April of last year. Jordan.