A startling incident unfolded at the renowned St. Regis Aspen Resort in Aspen, Colorado, on the night of October 23. During this event, a bear made its way into the luxurious hotel's premises, leading to a confrontation with a security guard.
This unexpected and dramatic encounter, which was captured on security footage, resulted in injuries to the security guard and the unfortunate euthanization of the bear.
The on-duty security guard received reports of a bear inside the hotel and bravely chose to investigate the situation.
According to a statement released by Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), as the security guard entered the hotel's kitchen, he came face to face with the intruding bear.
The security camera footage captured the bear casually wandering around the kitchen, with the guard cautiously approaching.
However, the situation quickly took a violent turn as the bear swiped at the guard, knocking him to the ground, and then hurriedly retreated.
Following the attack, the security guard managed to call 911, and he was promptly transported to a nearby hospital to treat the scratches he sustained on his back.
Thankfully, his injuries were not life-threatening, and he was discharged from the hospital after receiving medical attention.
The incident led to the activation of Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers who commenced a search for the bear. The search operation spanned until the early hours of Wednesday, October 25, when wildlife officers successfully located and apprehended the bear.
Per CPW, the officers found the bear near Conner Park and employed non-lethal tactics to haze the animal into a tree within the park. Following this, a tranquilizer gun was used to immobilize the bear, and it was safely removed from the tree using an Aspen Fire ladder truck.
Unfortunately, in accordance with CPW policy, the bear was humanely euthanized, marking a somber conclusion to this extraordinary sequence of events.
Investigations into the incident revealed that the bear had gained access to the hotel through a series of doors near the hotel's courtyard.
During the search for the bear involved in the attack, CPW officers observed the presence of eight other bears moving about downtown Aspen.
For more details, watch the video below: