Teens Come Face-To-Face With Bear In Truckee Home
TRUCKEE (CBS13) — An unwelcome guest aggressively made its way through a Truckee home early Saturday morning going after any food it could get its paws on.
"We saw the bear look at us, and it was really scary, it was huge," said Hayes Sherman.
That face-off led to a terrifying few moments for Hayes and his friend Bobby Harden as the bear tried to get inside the room where they were watching TV.
"It was the scariest moment of both of our lives, we had no idea what to do," said Bobby.
"We were trembling, we're both 15, we were shaking, couldn't stop shaking," said Hayes.
Speaking to CBS13 through Facetime from their family's Bay Area home, the boys recounted the terrifying moments when they realized a bear had gotten in the house.
READ: Deputies Meet Girl Who Said She's Afraid Of Law Enforcement Officers, Give Her Special Teddy Bear
"I was trying to call 911 on my watch, cause I didn't have my phone in the room," Hayes said.
Caught on home surveillance cameras, the bear is seen raiding the fridge, shredding pints of Ben and Jerry's ice cream and devouring taco meat before making itself comfortable on the couch in the living room.
At one point, the bear made its way to the boys' room with only a sliding door separating them.
"The bear saw us turn the lights off, came up to the door, started banging against it, scratching on it," said Hayes.
"We felt a shake on the door while we were holding it. This was crazy cause it didn't lock, and so we had to hold the door while the bear was trying to break it down," said Bobby.
ALSO: Black Bear Wanders Into City Hall, Heads Toward The Kitchen
Hayes says they regrettably forgot to close the garage door and the boys had also left berries on the counter, which were an easy target for a hungry bear.
The Placer County Sheriff's Office told the boys to make a lot of noise to scare off the bear. But at the moment that direction proved difficult to follow.
"I told them, 'I am not yelling and shouting at a seven-foot large bear. Does that make sense?" Hayes said.
Thankfully, a sheriff's deputy arrived quickly, opening the door and shooting one non-lethal bear round from her shotgun. She managed to shoo the bear off and became a hero to two shaken young boys.
"We came out, took a picture with her, and we're just so grateful she arrived on time to save us," said Hayes.
READ: Deputies Warn Lake Tahoe Tourists About Cornering Bears For Photos
The boys said they learned the hard way to make sure the doors are locked, garage doors are closed, and no food is left out.
"Normally bears are not aggressive, unless you taunt them, or they're protecting their cubs. In this case the best thing to do is call 911 and make as much noise to scare the bear off," said Placer County Sheriff's Sergeant David Hunt.
He said even though its summer, right now the bears are fattening up getting ready to hibernate in the winter.
"You want to keep your food in sealed containers, don't leave your garbage outside, or in the garage," he said.
Hayes and his family, who own the Truckee home, are now bear proofing their house. Hayes' mom, Susan Mohum said they are adding electric mats and screens for their windows.
READ: Bear Breaks Into Man's Laundry Room, Damages Ceiling And Washing Machine
"I'm very very proud, they were calm, they did the right thing, it was a scary situation, but the boys did very well," said Mohum.
Deputies have responded to many bear-related calls in the Tahoe area the last couple of weeks and want to remind homeowners and visitors to lock their car doors and all residence doors.
Additionally, don't leave any food in cars. Bears have a very keen sense of smell and will find it, even behind locked car doors.