Florida recently held its first bear hunt in two decades.Photo: Getty Images
A Montana man shot and killed a bear after the animal broke into his home early in the morning.
Thomas Bolkcom and his fiancée, Seeley Oblander, were sleeping on Thursday when one of their dogs began barking at about 3 a.m. at their residence in the small town of Luther, at the base of the Beartooth Mountains, according to theAssociated Press.
Bolkcom then ran downstairs and returned to confront the bear.
After shooting the bear once, it ran into the sunroom, where Bolkcom shot the unwelcome visitor several more times, according toFox News.
The couple called Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks game wardens to investigate the incident and then enlisted family members — including Bolkcom’s brother and their fathers — to help clean up asThomas and Seeley had to leave to catch a flight to Arizona for their bachelor and bachelorette parties, according to the AP.
A representative with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks did not immediately return PEOPLE’s request for comment, but the department told the AP that the bear encounter was due to other residents in the community leaving their food or garbage unsecured.
“This is pretty abnormal behavior to have a bear entering a home," Chrissy Webb, of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, told the news agency. “This large male black bear ended up dying because of improperly stored attractants in the community."
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.For Seeley, the incident was eye-opening.“I never thought there would be a bear in our house, so that was quite the wakeup call at three in the morning,” she told the AP. “I just stayed downstairs with the dogs, trying to help keep them out of the way and let Tom handle it.”
source: people.com
