This wasn’t the visitor Lyndhurst expected during World Cup week

🐻 A young black bear wandering through Lyndhurst neighborhoods prompted a major response from police and wildlife officials.

🚨 Schools and day care centers were placed on shelter-in-place while officers worked to safely contain the animal.

🌲 After being tranquilized and tagged, the healthy bear was relocated to Sussex County and released back into the wild.

LYNDHURST — A black bear that was caught on video strolling down a street in a Bergen County township has been captured and relocated.

“Apparently, this bear took a detour and was confused by the Welcome to Lyndhurst-Bear Country sign on the way to today’s match,” Lyndhurst police quipped on its Facebook page, referring to the FIFA World Cup at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.

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A bear was safely captured after roaming Lyndhurst neigborhoods (Screenshot via video from Lyndhurst Police Department)

Black bear spotted roaming Lyndhurst neighborhood

On Tuesday, June 16, just before 1 p.m., patrol units responded to the 200 block of Webster Avenue on a report of a black bear in the area.

Police saw the animal, believed to be only a year old, roaming between yards on Webster and Jay Avenues.

As a precaution, Lyndhurst officers placed local day care facilities and schools on shelter-in-place and advised residents to bring their pets inside as they worked to isolate and contain the bear.

Shelter-in-place ordered at schools and day care centers

Officers were able to corral the bear to a tree located in a backyard on the corner of Jay Avenue and Tontine Avenue.

Members of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Bureau of Wildlife came to the scene to assist, too.

bear 3 - 1

NJ wildlife officials safely tranquilize bear

Wildlife specialists deployed a safety net, and with the help of the police officers, were able to sedate the bear, bring it down from the tree, and safely net the animal.

Bear relocated to Sussex County after capture

The bear appears to be healthy. It was tagged before being taken to Sussex County and released into the wild.

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