Watch: Connecticut shoppers flee as bear runs across mall parking lot
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said no one was hurt in the incident, and reminded residents to be "bear aware" as bears become more active in the spring.
Watch: People flee from bear in Connecticut mall parking lot
On Friday, video taken outside Westfarms Mall in West Hartford, Connecticut, showed a bear running around as wildlife officers try to corral it away from the public. People can be seen fleeing the area in the background.
WEST HARTFORD, Conn.– People outside a Connecticut mall had a scare when a bear was spotted running near the entrance.
Video from outside Westfarms Mall in West Hartford on Friday afternoon showed wildlife officers trying to corral a small black bear running around outside.
Wildlife officers were called to the scene Friday when police received reports of a bear in a tree near the mall, according to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).
Upon responding to the mall, they found a yearling black bear in a tree.
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A bear runs from a parking lot in West Hartford, CT, toward a mall. (Camille M Conover via Storyful / FOX Weather)
"Oh my God! Oh my God!" a woman yells in the video, as the bear darts from the mall's parking lot toward a nearby building.
People near the building are then seen running inside to get away from the animal.
A person in a green vest, likely a wildlife officer, chases the bear away from the building.
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A wildlife officer chases the bear away from the mall. (Camille M Conover via Storyful / FOX Weather)
As the bear runs out of frame, more officers come bounding around the corner, toward the bear.
DEEP said officers were able to get the bear to the woods nearby, and no one was hurt in the incident. Officers reminded residents to be "bear aware" as bears become more active in the spring.