Advertisement

Nearly Electrocuted Bear Now Well Enough to Be Outdoors

Share
From Associated Press

A bear that suffered severe electrical burns when it toppled off a utility pole in a spectacular explosion of sparks has been allowed outdoors with her cub for the first time since their capture in August.

The two will winter in an outdoor enclosure at the Rio Grande Zoo--out of sight of the public to minimize human contact--after which state game officers intend to release them back into the wild.

The cub was first to step outside Thursday. After about 15 minutes, it hustled to a cottonwood in the enclosure and began climbing the tree, officials said.

Advertisement

The mother bear has gained 80 pounds since Aug. 14, when she fell, trailing smoke, from the 25-foot pole in an Albuquerque neighborhood. She had been hit by two tranquilizer darts fired by state game officers and suffered severe burns from 7,200 volts she received when she hit a transformer on the way down.

The incident was caught by television cameras and broadcast nationally. The bear was not considered healthy enough to go outdoors until Thursday.

The cub, meanwhile, has grown from 15 pounds to 80, officials said.

Drought was blamed for an invasion of 19 bears in the city last August.

Advertisement