In the early hours of June 19th, a bear was sighted on the grounds of a house in Taihara, Aoba Ward, Sendai City. A reporter reported, “The bear was spotted in this residential area near Taihara Station and then left to the north.” At around 3:30 a.m. on the 19th, police received a report from a resident of a house in Taihara 3-chome, Aoba Ward, saying, “I heard something like a cry, and when I looked outside, there was a bear on the property.”
The bear was approximately 80 centimeters long and then headed towards Taihara Forest Park. The house where the bear was sighted was right in front of Taihara Station on the Sendai Subway Namboku Line. Also, at around 12:50 a.m. on the 18th, a bear approximately 1 meter long was sighted on a street in Taihara 6-chome.
A nearby resident said, “I’m worried. I think it’s unusual for bears to be appearing at this time of year.” In response to the surge in bear sightings, Miyagi Prefecture extended its “bear sighting alert” until July 17th and began issuing a “special bear sighting alert” on the 19th, which will be issued when a fatal bear attack occurs.
