Latest news with #Arbid
CNN
10-02-2025
- General
- CNN
California man finds 525-pound animal under his home after Los Angeles fires. The bear goes by Barry
A Southern California man returned home after evacuating last month's devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires to discover an unexpected resident lurking beneath it. Samy Arbid told CNN he found a 525-pound adult, male black bear living under his Altadena, California, home after the Eaton Fire blazed through the city. The fire scorched more than 14,000 acres and ranks among the state's top-three most destructive wildfires, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The bear, which survived the fire while living under Arbid's house, required out-of-the-box thinking for a wildlife team to safely lure him out. 'Barry,' as local residents call the bear, has been a recurring visitor in the neighborhood for quite some time, according to Arbid, who described him as a 'mellow' creature who generally minds his business. The only bears that live in California are black bears, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Arbid and his wife said they were warned about bears in the area, but never expected such a close encounter. 'We had heard from neighbors that there's, you know, this big bear. He comes around all the time,' Arbid said last week. 'Nobody knew that the bear was actually living under our house. So that was a surprise to everybody.' The couple discovered Barry as they began to hear noises under their home. They decided it was likely a small critter. However, what started as a few hisses and strange growls quickly turned into a shocking discovery. 'We thought it was probably an opossum or something,' Arbid said. 'Sure enough, I put a camera under there, and we saw this huge bear.' While other residents evacuated the Altadena area, it appears the bear decided to hang back and take shelter under the home, seemingly unaffected by the fire. Arbid said a fish and wildlife biologist explained what may have prompted the bear to stay under the house, despite the flames and smoke. 'The smoke won't deter them,' Arbid said. 'If they find a place they feel secure, nothing will deter them.' SoCalGas, a local gas and oil company, refused to service Arbid's home until the bear was no longer in the crawl space they were going to work in, Arbid said. In all fairness, a bear wouldn't make the best coworker. Until the bear could be removed, Arbid and his wife were unable to restore their power. Therefore, backup was needed to remove Barry in a timely manner. The CDFW had the daunting task of removing the giant bear from a relatively small space. CDFW employees were concerned about how Barry may react once he came out from beneath the home, Arbid said. The CDFW team had several cameras set up from various angles to monitor the bear's behavior during the removal process, Arbid explained. Due to the animal's size, the wildfire team decided using anesthesia to subdue the bear was not an option for removal, the fish and wildlife department said in a January 29 news release. Fish and wildlife biologist Kevin Howells and a team of eight wildlife employees spent nearly 24 hours attempting to remove Barry from the crawl space, according to the release. With some creative thinking – and the help of a rotisserie chicken – the team successfully coaxed Barry into coming out from his bear cave, according to CNN affiliate KCAL. The team used a bear trap to safely secure Barry and begin the process of relocating him to an appropriate habitat, CDFW said. Barry received a welfare check and a GPS collar, and was released into the Angeles National Forest, the agency reported.
CNN
10-02-2025
- General
- CNN
California man finds 525-pound animal under his home after Los Angeles fires. The bear goes by Barry
A Southern California man returned home after evacuating last month's devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires to discover an unexpected resident lurking beneath it. Samy Arbid told CNN he found a 525-pound adult, male black bear living under his Altadena, California, home after the Eaton Fire blazed through the city. The fire scorched more than 14,000 acres and ranks among the state's top-three most destructive wildfires, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The bear, which survived the fire while living under Arbid's house, required out-of-the-box thinking for a wildlife team to safely lure him out. 'Barry,' as local residents call the bear, has been a recurring visitor in the neighborhood for quite some time, according to Arbid, who described him as a 'mellow' creature who generally minds his business. The only bears that live in California are black bears, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Arbid and his wife said they were warned about bears in the area, but never expected such a close encounter. 'We had heard from neighbors that there's, you know, this big bear. He comes around all the time,' Arbid said last week. 'Nobody knew that the bear was actually living under our house. So that was a surprise to everybody.' The couple discovered Barry as they began to hear noises under their home. They decided it was likely a small critter. However, what started as a few hisses and strange growls quickly turned into a shocking discovery. 'We thought it was probably an opossum or something,' Arbid said. 'Sure enough, I put a camera under there, and we saw this huge bear.' While other residents evacuated the Altadena area, it appears the bear decided to hang back and take shelter under the home, seemingly unaffected by the fire. Arbid said a fish and wildlife biologist explained what may have prompted the bear to stay under the house, despite the flames and smoke. 'The smoke won't deter them,' Arbid said. 'If they find a place they feel secure, nothing will deter them.' SoCalGas, a local gas and oil company, refused to service Arbid's home until the bear was no longer in the crawl space they were going to work in, Arbid said. In all fairness, a bear wouldn't make the best coworker. Until the bear could be removed, Arbid and his wife were unable to restore their power. Therefore, backup was needed to remove Barry in a timely manner. The CDFW had the daunting task of removing the giant bear from a relatively small space. CDFW employees were concerned about how Barry may react once he came out from beneath the home, Arbid said. The CDFW team had several cameras set up from various angles to monitor the bear's behavior during the removal process, Arbid explained. Due to the animal's size, the wildfire team decided using anesthesia to subdue the bear was not an option for removal, the fish and wildlife department said in a January 29 news release. Fish and wildlife biologist Kevin Howells and a team of eight wildlife employees spent nearly 24 hours attempting to remove Barry from the crawl space, according to the release. With some creative thinking – and the help of a rotisserie chicken – the team successfully coaxed Barry into coming out from his bear cave, according to CNN affiliate KCAL. The team used a bear trap to safely secure Barry and begin the process of relocating him to an appropriate habitat, CDFW said. Barry received a welfare check and a GPS collar, and was released into the Angeles National Forest, the agency reported.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
California man finds 525-pound animal under his home after Los Angeles fires. The bear goes by Barry
A Southern California man returned home after evacuating last month's devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires to discover an unexpected resident lurking beneath it. Samy Arbid told CNN he found a 525-pound adult, male black bear living under his Altadena, California, home after the Eaton Fire blazed through the city. The fire scorched more than 14,000 acres and ranks among the state's top-three most destructive wildfires, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The bear, which survived the fire while living under Arbid's house, required out-of-the-box thinking for a wildlife team to safely lure him out. 'Barry,' as local residents call the bear, has been a recurring visitor in the neighborhood for quite some time, according to Arbid, who described him as a 'mellow' creature who generally minds his business. The only bears that live in California are black bears, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Arbid and his wife said they were warned about bears in the area, but never expected such a close encounter. 'We had heard from neighbors that there's, you know, this big bear. He comes around all the time,' Arbid said last week. 'Nobody knew that the bear was actually living under our house. So that was a surprise to everybody.' The couple discovered Barry as they began to hear noises under their home. They decided it was likely a small critter. However, what started as a few hisses and strange growls quickly turned into a shocking discovery. 'We thought it was probably an opossum or something,' Arbid said. 'Sure enough, I put a camera under there, and we saw this huge bear.' While other residents evacuated the Altadena area, it appears the bear decided to hang back and take shelter under the home, seemingly unaffected by the fire. Arbid said a fish and wildlife biologist explained what may have prompted the bear to stay under the house, despite the flames and smoke. 'The smoke won't deter them,' Arbid said. 'If they find a place they feel secure, nothing will deter them.' SoCalGas, a local gas and oil company, refused to service Arbid's home until the bear was no longer in the crawl space they were going to work in, Arbid said. In all fairness, a bear wouldn't make the best coworker. Until the bear could be removed, Arbid and his wife were unable to restore their power. Therefore, backup was needed to remove Barry in a timely manner. The CDFW had the daunting task of removing the giant bear from a relatively small space. CDFW employees were concerned about how Barry may react once he came out from beneath the home, Arbid said. The CDFW team had several cameras set up from various angles to monitor the bear's behavior during the removal process, Arbid explained. Due to the animal's size, the wildfire team decided using anesthesia to subdue the bear was not an option for removal, the fish and wildlife department said in a January 29 news release. Fish and wildlife biologist Kevin Howells and a team of eight wildlife employees spent nearly 24 hours attempting to remove Barry from the crawl space, according to the release. With some creative thinking – and the help of a rotisserie chicken – the team successfully coaxed Barry into coming out from his bear cave, according to CNN affiliate KCAL. The team used a bear trap to safely secure Barry and begin the process of relocating him to an appropriate habitat, CDFW said. Barry received a welfare check and a GPS collar, and was released into the Angeles National Forest, the agency reported.
CNN
10-02-2025
- General
- CNN
California man finds 525-pound animal under his home after Los Angeles fires. The bear goes by Barry
A Southern California man returned home after evacuating last month's devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires to discover an unexpected resident lurking beneath it. Samy Arbid told CNN he found a 525-pound adult, male black bear living under his Altadena, California, home after the Eaton Fire blazed through the city. The fire scorched more than 14,000 acres and ranks among the state's top-three most destructive wildfires, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The bear, which survived the fire while living under Arbid's house, required out-of-the-box thinking for a wildlife team to safely lure him out. 'Barry,' as local residents call the bear, has been a recurring visitor in the neighborhood for quite some time, according to Arbid, who described him as a 'mellow' creature who generally minds his business. The only bears that live in California are black bears, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Arbid and his wife said they were warned about bears in the area, but never expected such a close encounter. 'We had heard from neighbors that there's, you know, this big bear. He comes around all the time,' Arbid said last week. 'Nobody knew that the bear was actually living under our house. So that was a surprise to everybody.' The couple discovered Barry as they began to hear noises under their home. They decided it was likely a small critter. However, what started as a few hisses and strange growls quickly turned into a shocking discovery. 'We thought it was probably an opossum or something,' Arbid said. 'Sure enough, I put a camera under there, and we saw this huge bear.' While other residents evacuated the Altadena area, it appears the bear decided to hang back and take shelter under the home, seemingly unaffected by the fire. Arbid said a fish and wildlife biologist explained what may have prompted the bear to stay under the house, despite the flames and smoke. 'The smoke won't deter them,' Arbid said. 'If they find a place they feel secure, nothing will deter them.' SoCalGas, a local gas and oil company, refused to service Arbid's home until the bear was no longer in the crawl space they were going to work in, Arbid said. In all fairness, a bear wouldn't make the best coworker. Until the bear could be removed, Arbid and his wife were unable to restore their power. Therefore, backup was needed to remove Barry in a timely manner. The CDFW had the daunting task of removing the giant bear from a relatively small space. CDFW employees were concerned about how Barry may react once he came out from beneath the home, Arbid said. The CDFW team had several cameras set up from various angles to monitor the bear's behavior during the removal process, Arbid explained. Due to the animal's size, the wildfire team decided using anesthesia to subdue the bear was not an option for removal, the fish and wildlife department said in a January 29 news release. Fish and wildlife biologist Kevin Howells and a team of eight wildlife employees spent nearly 24 hours attempting to remove Barry from the crawl space, according to the release. With some creative thinking – and the help of a rotisserie chicken – the team successfully coaxed Barry into coming out from his bear cave, according to CNN affiliate KCAL. The team used a bear trap to safely secure Barry and begin the process of relocating him to an appropriate habitat, CDFW said. Barry received a welfare check and a GPS collar, and was released into the Angeles National Forest, the agency reported.
Yahoo
04-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Video shows 525-pound bear finally emerge from underneath California home after wildfires
When a resident in Southern California returned home in the aftermath of devastating wildfires, an unlikely guest was there to greet him: a huge 525-pound black bear. Altadena resident Samy Arbid and his neighbors had evacuated their homes due to the Eaton Fires. When they returned, Arbid found the unexpected guest hiding in his house that escaped from the fire, California Department of Fish and Wildlife said in a Jan. 29 post on Facebook. The "massive, 525-pound adult male bear" was found in a crawl space beneath the home when a utility company came to restore power in the house. 'I think during the fire he pretty much stayed there. I think he was scared,' Arbid told local media outlets, according to Storyful, adding he "couldn't believe it" when he saw the animal in the crawl space. The bear, nicknamed Barry, is well-known to neighborhood residents, who have seen him roaming around the area, ABC7 reported. According to the local media outlet, the bear had been in the crawl space before the fires broke out and Arbid had been devising a plan to remove it. "After assessing the crawlspace and size of bear, it became clear that chemical immobilization of the bear was not an option," CDFW said, adding their team of experts led by CDFW environmental scientist Kevin Howells "determined a bear trap placed near the crawlspace opening would be the best decision given the situation." Fortunately for them, the bear came out of the crawlspace and triggered the trap door within minutes of placing the trap, CDFW said. Once in the trap, the bear was taken to Angeles National Forest, where it received a welfare check and a GPS collar before being safely released back into the wild just after midnight. Video footage captured by the homeowner's security camera shows the bear coming out of the crawl space after spotting the treats the department had laid out for him. Treats included a feast of apples, peanut butter, sardines in tomato sauce, chicken meat and butterscotch lure, a CDFW spokesperson told USA TODAY. The effort took Howells and his team of eight nearly 24 hours, CDFW said. The homeowner's utilities, meanwhile, were also restored, while the "crawl space was securely boarded and is now bear-proof," CDFW said, urging residents in the foothills of bear country to close crawl spaces with bear-proof material to prevent bears from denning there and damaging property. CDFW also advises homeowners to reach out to the department if they ever find a bear in a crawlspace so "that a wildlife professional can evaluate the situation and help determine ways that the homeowner can discourage the bear from using the crawlspace and seal the entrance immediately once the animal is out." The Eaton and Palisades fires, which sparked last month, have been fully contained after dealing destruction, smoke, and ash around the Los Angeles area, according to Cal Fire. The two fires sparked on Jan. 7 during a historic wind event and swept through the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, killing at least 29, burning over 37,000 acres, or 57.8 square miles, and leaving destroyed homes and livelihoods in their wake. The blazes, currently under investigation, are the second and third most destructive wildfires in California history, according to Cal Fire. Contributing: James Powel, USA TODAY Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@ and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Watch: Huge bear hiding under Altadena home removed after Eaton Fire
