Bear spotted in La Cañada on Wednesday morning

A bear was spotted in La Canada Flintridge during the morning commute Wednesday, jogging along Chevy Chase Drive near Stratford Drive. Montrose resident Firoz Khan said he was driving to an appointment around 7:25 a.m. Wednesday when he saw the bear on Chevy Chase. Khan estimated the bear is between 250 and 300 pounds.

“It was walking on the street and then when it saw two or three cars it started to jog,” Khan said.

He said the bear then turned into the forest and disappeared from view. The intersection is close to Cherry Canyon, the site where other bears recently have been spotted.

California Department of Fish and Game officials say that bears are usually harmless to humans, and are only interested in easy access to food or trash cans. Residents are encouraged to call Fish and Game if they see a bear, to take out garbage cans only on pick-up day, keep pet food bowls inside and harvest fruits and vegetables as soon as they are ripe.

-- Bill Kisliuk, Times Community News

Twitter: @bkisliuk