Black bear pays Leominster a visit

By Jaime Lutz, Globe Correspondent

Keith and Pauline Charron, of Leominster, had a breakfast guest they weren’t expecting this morning.

At about 7:15 a.m., they looked out their window to see a large black bear eating at their birdfeeder.

“When it stood on its hind legs it was taller than my husband even with his arms stretched up,” Pauline said – around 7 feet, Keith estimated.

This bear made its way through downtown Leominster this morning, not causing any injuries or damage but attracting alot of curiosity.

Starting at 7 a.m., Leominster Police posted updates on the bear’s whereabouts on their Facebook account, noting its movements as the animal meandered through Lindell Avenue, North Main Street, Highland Avenue, Nelson Street, and DiMassa Drive.

Eventually, police were able to coax the bear back through the woods at the Doyle Reservation, said Reggie Zimmerman, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Police cleared the scene at around 1 p.m. this afternoon.

Based on a photo police posted on their Facebook page, experts in MassWildlife determined the bear was over a year old – a grown-up in bear years, Zimmerman said.

The bear was likely getting ready for hibernation season by looking for foods rich in fat, he said.

“Basically, they look for birdfeeders and trash,” Zimmerman said.

Despite its size, the bear likely never presented any danger, however, Zimmerman said.

“Black bears are more afraid of us than we are of them,” he said.

But Keith Charron, who lives on Nelson Street, said he was never afraid.

“I was in the house where I belonged and the bear was outside where he belonged,” he said.