This brazen bandit wasn’t about to leave empty-pawed.
A black bear pulled off a wild heist that was caught on camera after wandering into a Colorado firehouse and casually making off with a duffle bag full of equipment.
The furry felon is seen on surveillance footage walking up to the firehouse and snatching the bag before making a quick getaway into the dead of night with his loot in his mouth.
“Smokey the Bear (or who we assume is smokey) walked into the bay at Station 16, grabbed our gear, peaced out real quick, and said ‘thanks, I’ll take it from here,’” the Colorado Springs Fire Department shared on Facebook on Monday.
“In all seriousness, our friends at Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) remind us that Black Bears are a ‘stomach with a nose’ trying to bulk up for winter,” the fire department wrote.
The Centennial State is on track for a record-high year of bear sightings and conflicts as drought conditions across the state continue to worsen — stripping away the natural food bears rely on to survive, 9News reported.
CPW received 6,129 reports of bear sightings and conflicts across Colorado from Jan. 1 to Aug. 13 of this year — nearly double the amount of sightings in the same period last year.
To stay safe against four-legged bandits, the fire department recommends keeping food and trash secured, taking down bird feeders, keeping pet food inside, ensuring grills are kept clean and taking out trash on pick-up day only.
“If you encounter a bear, make loud noises to scare them off to make any encounter with humans uncomfortable for them,” the fire department said.
“Depending on human food sources is unsafe and puts bears and people at risk.”
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