Bear incident in Utah County — June 18, 2019

At around 6 a.m. Tuesday, a bear entered a campsite in the left fork of Hobble Creek Canyon in a campground area on private property toward the top of the canyon.

A bear disturbed a tent, and a boy received minor scratches on his back and is expected to be OK.

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) is coordinating with USDA Wildlife Services, and they will work together to track and capture the bear.

We will also work with the U.S. Forest Service to put up notifications at campgrounds in the area.

It is unclear how long it may take to locate the bear, but we will work to find it until we have exhausted all our options.

Because this bear exhibited a lack of fear toward people, when it is located, the bear will be euthanized.

While we are working to locate and trap the bear; we ask people to stay out of the upper left-hand fork of Hobble Creek Canyon.

Having unofficial personnel in the area could disrupt efforts to locate the bear.

We are working to notify the family of the boy.

We will provide updates as they become available.

Remember that Utah is bear country. For safety tips, visit the DWR website: https://wildlife.utah.gov/living-with-bears