14 DAY TRIAL // A Central Florida woman had to be hospitalized on Saturday night after being attacked and dragged along her driveway by five bears that had entered her garage.
The incident happened in Lake Mary, Seminole County, when the 45-year-old woman, whose name has not been revealed, went to put out the trash from her garage. According to police, the woman says she stumbled upon five bears of various sizes rummaging through her garbage bins in search for food.
Luckily, the woman narrowly escaped the attack and managed to run back into her house and call for help. Daily Mail informs us that she was taken to South Seminole Hospital in Longwood with injuries to her head, as well as her face, legs and torso.
While the victim says she was attacked by five bears, supposedly an entire family of the animals, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials believe this wasn’t the case, suggesting that only one aggressive bear was responsible for the attack. They think she was mauled by a 200-pound (90-kg) black bear.
According to Seminole County Sheriff Lt. Pete Brenenstuhl, the woman received treatment for her scrapes and cuts and was released from the hospital on Sunday.
The aforementioned newspaper points out that this unfortunate incident happened just ten miles (16 km) from another bear attack, in which a 54-year-old woman was mauled by a black bear while she was walking her dogs.
Reports say it was the worst bear attack ever recorded in Florida, as the woman was found covered in blood and with facial injuries that left her unrecognizable to her neighbors.
Officials warn that this time of the year, bears are leaving their winter dens and venture into residential areas in search for food, so residents should be on the lookout. They say their increased activity means people are more likely to come upon bears in neighborhoods.
“Now is the time to expect bears to show up looking for food. If they can't find food in your neighborhood, they'll move on,” Dave Telesco, the head of the wildlife commission's bear management program, said.
Three traps have reportedly been set up inside the Carisbrooke subdivision as Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials continue to investigate the incident.
Researchers say that the most recent survey performed in 2002 revealed that around 3,000 black bears were living in Florida’s woods, but they estimate that currently there could be as many as 5,000 now.