Black bear and 3 cubs attack man after they break into his Colorado home

A 74-year-old Colorado man was injured in his home by a black bear after the animal and its three cubs opened a partially cracked sliding glass door, authorities said.

The attack Thursday in Lake City marks the first bear attack in the state this year, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

The animals got into the home about 8:30 p.m., startling residents who “heard a loud crash and saw the bears entering through the door,” officials said.

The man who was injured responded by grabbing a chair and attempting to direct the bear out the door, officials said.

But the animal charged him, knocking him into a wall, authorities said. The bear then swiped at the man, who was clawed on his head, neck, arms, abdomen, shoulder and calf, officials said.

He was treated at home and declined to go to the hospital. The attack could have been much worse, officials said.

“It’s certainly lucky we didn’t have a fatality, because it was close,” said state Parks and Wildlife officer Lucas Martin. 

When law enforcement and medical personnel arrived, they found residents locked in a bedroom while the three cubs remained in the home. A county deputy was able to get the cubs to leave the house.

The sow and her cubs were euthanized after confirmation of involvement in the attack, officials said.

“It’s a terrible set of circumstances that, unfortunately, our district wildlife managers are routinely faced with,” State Parks and Wildlife Area Wildlife Manager Brandon Diamond said in a statement. “Clearly, these bears were highly habituated and were willing to enter an occupied house with the residents sitting just feet away. When a bear reaches this level of human habituation, clearly a lot of interaction with people has already happened.”

Before last week’s incident, there were eight reports of bear activity in Hinsdale County in 2024, where Lake City is, officials said. Lake City is about 255 miles southwest of Denver.

Last year, across Colorado, six bear attacks were reported, according to state Parks and Wildlife.