Bear euthanized after biting woman inside Sussex County Dollar General, officials say
VERNON TOWNSHIP, N.J. (Sussex County) — Police in Vernon Township euthanized a black bear Tuesday after it entered a Dollar General store and bit a woman on the leg, according to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish & Wildlife.
The incident happened around 3:45 p.m. when a 90-year-old woman was attacked inside the store, police said. She was transported by ambulance to a hospital with a minor injury, described as a bite or scratch wound.
Earlier in the day, around 1:30 p.m., Vernon police responded to reports of a nuisance bear in the McAfee section of town near the same Dollar General. Officers used conditioning methods to disperse the bear, which left the area. Police notified NJ Fish and Wildlife about the incident.
At about 3:55 p.m., police received another call reporting that the bear had attacked a dog and chased two employees at a business near Dollar General before entering the store. A store employee called 911 and reported that the bear had made contact with a patron. Another customer helped guide the bear out of the building and into the parking lot before police arrived.
Officers followed the bear to a nearby property, where they euthanized it under NJ Fish and Wildlife response criteria for category 1 bears. The dog involved in the incident was transported to a veterinarian by its owner.
Fish & Wildlife personnel collected the bear’s remains for rabies testing, which is expected to take three to five days.
More information about black bears in New Jersey is available at dep.nj.gov/njfw/bears.
