Bear Forces Its Way Inside SUV, Does Major Damage

BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4) - A bear that got stuck in an SUV in the Boulder foothills this week caused major damage to the interior of the vehicle.

The incident happened on Tuesday morning along Flagstaff Road in the Boulder area.

Douglas Waggoner walked into his driveway and saw the doors on both of his cars open. Then he saw his neighbor's SUV shaking.

"I though 'Boy, if there are people in there, there's a party -- there is one party going on,' " he said.

It turned out to be a 300 pound bear, who had gotten trapped when the door closed behind him as he entered the vehicle.

Waggoner ran inside to tell his wife Wynn.

"My first reaction was 'No, no, no,' you're kidding," she said.

They both stepped outside and saw the frantic animal tearing up the car in its effort to escape.

"The back window was actually bending under the weight of the bear as he was trying to get out," Wynn said.

The bear shredded the dashboard, cracked the windshield and gutted much of the interior. He also scattered the food that had lured him to the car in the first place.

"There's just nothing left of the interior of the car," Wynn said. "That car looks like it was bombed inside."

The Waggoners contacted Denver Parks and Wildlife and an employee arrived and opened the SUV's passenger door. The bear jumped out and ran through the carpark, coming only inches from Wynn. It then ran off into the woods, and Wynn tried unsuccessfully to capture a photo of it. The picture shows a small portion of the animal's rear end.

The couple says the bear didn't seem angry, just very scared. They think it must have been stuck in the SUV for several hours.