Bear cub enclosure damaged after storm

STROUDSBURG, MONROE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — The nasty weather that rolled through our area on Wednesday took a toll on a local non-profit wildlife center.

The Pocono Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center‘s Bear Cub Enclosure was struck by a tree Wednesday afternoon, causing a lot of damage.

There is quite a bit of damage to the enclosure. The enclosure is the only one like it in the state for black bear cubs, and the staff and volunteers here at Pocono Wildlife say that this space is crucial.

“I was doing some paperwork and heard this big crash ran out and one of our trees had fallen down and crashed into the bear pen,” Pocono Wildlife co-executive director Susan Downing explained.

The damage comes at the height of one of the center’s busiest seasons and will take some big bills to repair.

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“Unfortunately, it’s happening right at baby season, and baby season is huge. We just got in our first set of baby raccoons,” Downing added.

Last year, the center successfully rehabilitated and released four baby bears from their enclosure.

No cubs are currently occupying the space, so there were no injuries.

However, Downing says they could receive new residents any day now.

“We don’t know when a bear cub might come in so we need to get this done ASAP,” Downing continued.

Thanks to the support of the community, work has already started on cleanup.

“We’re donating our time to get the tree taken care off of the bear den, and in the future, we are gonna be taking down the rest of the pine tree that’s standing in front of us,” said JF Property Services owner Jon Klenke.

Klenke says the entire tree is rotting, and poses a risk of falling entirely.

This could take out an entire portion of occupied animal enclosures.

“It’s rotten and it can be a hazard to the other animals here,” Klenke added.

There’s still a lot of work to be done, and center management says they’re hoping the community can continue to come together to help.

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