A Southern California man returned home after evacuating last month’s devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires to find an unexpected guest lurking beneath his house.
Samy Arbid told CNN that he discovered a 525-pound adult male black bear living under his home in Altadena, California, after the Eaton Fire swept through the city. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the fire burned more than 14,000 acres and is among the state’s top three most destructive wildfires.
The bear, which miraculously survived the fire while taking shelter beneath Arbid’s house, required creative measures from a wildlife team to be safely lured out.
“We had heard from neighbors that there’s this big bear who roams around all the time,” Arbid said last week. “Nobody knew the bear was actually living under our house. So that was a surprise to everybody.”
Arbid and his wife initially heard strange noises beneath their home and assumed it was a small critter. However, what began as faint hisses and growls soon led to a shocking discovery.
