A bear was euthanized after it attacked a woman in Butler County Wednesday night.
Police in Butler Township, just north of Pittsburgh, say 55-year-old Lee Ann Galante let her dog outside in the backyard of her house on Bellefield Drive. A short time later, she heard a commotion. When she went outside to investigate the disturbance, a black bear attacked her.
She was able to escape and get back into her house. Police arrived around 8:30 and found a female black bear with three cubs in a tree close to the house.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission responded and tranquilized the cubs and euthanized the mother when she continued to be aggressive.
Galante was transported to Butler Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The woman's neighbor says he'd been seeing bears in the neighborhood for weeks and was worried about his children's safety. A doorbell camera recorded four bears rummaging through trash cans.
The Game Commission says that bear attacks are “extremely rare”, but they do happen.
If you encounter a bear here are some tips, though be aware that every encounter is different.
Alert the bear: Make loud noises
Get back: back away slowly if you are near a bear, never taking your eyes off the animal
Stay calm: Don’t make any sudden movements as you back away
Stay alert: Bears will use their senses to detect who you are, if they stand up or move closer to detect orders, once it recognized you’re a human, it will likely leave. If the bear continues to approach you, wave your arms wildly and make loud noises.
Fight back: If a bear does attack you, fight back using “rocks, sticks, binoculars and even their bare hands.”