Rescuer Climbs 40 Feet to Free Baby Bears From Tree in Asheville
Help Asheville Bears
A bear advocacy group in Asheville, North Carolina, is "on cloud nine" after coordinating with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) to rescue a bear cub this week.
A community member notified Help Asheville Bears (HAB) about a precarious situation involving two bear cubs in the Kenilworth neighborhood Wednesday. The youngsters—which had gotten separated from their mama—were found clinging to a tree trunk about 40 feet in the air after one of the cubs got its paw stuck between the trunk and a branch.
"One of the cub's siblings had stayed with it. Both were gnawing on branch to try to free the one cub," the organization wrote on Facebook. "It was reported to HAB that the cub had been in that predicament for hours."
Enter Ryan Luckadoo, the NCWRC technician HAB is calling a "superhero."
After assessing the situation, Luckadoo strapped a ladder against the tree, climbed to the top and attached additional tree steps to make it the rest of the way to the cubs.
"Once he reached the cubs, he was able to grab ahold of the cub and free it's rear paw, although the cub was not very happy," HAB wrote.
Fortunately, the cub was uninjured. Luckadoo freed the cub then put it back onto the tree below him so it could climb down the rest of the way on its own.
"We were all very anxious and worried," HAB wrote alongside video of the rescue (above). "No one had the ability to save these cubs except for this amazing NCWRC Wildlife Conservation Technician, the Super Hero Luckadoo!"
The group says the mama bear frequents the area daily, so they expect that the cubs were reunited with their family shortly after they were rescued.
WATCH: Watch This Mama Bear and Her Cub Have the Time of Their Lives on an Asheville Playground
The black bear is the only species found in North Carolina or anywhere in the eastern United States.
Black bears, by nature, are not aggressive animals. Most that wander into residential areas will quickly return to their natural habitat on their own.
For more information about coexisting with black bears, visit BearWise.org.
