Police say a bear was roaming around Suffern Monday before climbing up a tree.
The 2-year-old female black bear, weighing about 90 pounds, ran across Washington Avenue and ended up in a tree on Mansfield Place in Suffern. The residential area has several schools and churches nearby.
"If it gets cornered and it feels that it doesn't have an escape route, that's when it could become dangerous," says Matt Merchant, a biologist with the Department of Environmental Conservation.
Police kept the bear in the tree until Merchant arrived to tranquilize it. Branches in the tree broke the fall before the bear landed on thick pads that had been set up by DEC workers.
The cub is now being moved to the Catskills. It is believed her family is still in the general area, but has not caused any problems.