Black Bear Briefly Visits California Office Before Returning to Forest

A black bear unexpectedly entered a Southern California water district office by pushing open the front door. The bear explored the building briefly before heading back to the nearby forest. The incident was captured on surveillance video at the Crestline Village Water District in the San Bernardino Mountains.

The bear entered the office on Wednesday afternoon while employees observed the surprising event. The bear spent some time sniffing around the office and wandering through the hallways. It eventually returned to the entrance, opened the door again, and exited on its own accord.

“It was exciting. It was really cool to see a bear that close. It’s rare that we’re that close to them,” said Josselyn Brian, a Crestline Village Water District employee, to KTLA. “Thankfully, no one was in danger. There were no customers in there at the time, it was just us. So it couldn’t have been better. Scary, but wonderful.”

After leaving the office, employees saw the bear reenter the woods. No injuries occurred, and the animal did not damage the building. This was a recent unusual bear encounter capturing public attention.

Earlier in the week, a different bear incident in New Mexico unfolded. A bear in rural New Mexico climbed a utility pole near Gladstone, approximately 170 miles east of Santa Fe. This encounter was recorded on video and shared by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Accompanying the footage, a social media post humorously stated, “We appreciate the enthusiasm for American Energy Dominance, but this isn’t what we meant.”

The video, verified by Storyful, included an audio clip from a 911 caller reporting the sighting. The caller informed the dispatcher about the bear’s presence on a light pole. Wildlife officials were alerted, but the bear’s position made it unsafe to tranquilize it. Unfortunately, the bear later died from electrocution before wildlife officials could intervene. The New York Post reported this incident.

Experts note that black bears are adept climbers, often scaling trees or tall structures when startled by humans, traffic, or dogs. In mountain communities like Crestline, where bears frequently wander neighborhoods searching for food, human encounters are not unusual. However, a bear entering an office is notably rare.