Bear Brought Down From Tree In Downtown Morristown

MORRISTOWN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) - A bear got stuck in a tree Monday in Morristown, New Jersey, and attracted a lot of attention as wildlife experts ran into a little trouble trying to get the bear down.

As CBS2's Matt Kozar reported, the furry 247-pound black bear sauntered through the Morristown Green –right in the center of town near the Century 21 at North Park Place – until he found a tree branch he liked around 11 a.m.

There are plenty of bears in Morristown, but how this particular bear wandered into the popular downtown area remained unclear late Monday afternoon.

Chopper 2 captured the excitement from up above as police cleared the area and cornered the curious 2-year-old bear. Curious people on the ground just couldn't bear to watch.

Many posted pictures of the furry creature on social media.

"What did I think of it? It was a big bear hanging in the tree," one spectator said.

"It's gorgeous here," added spectator Diana Ramsey. "Look at these trees -- who wouldn't want to be here?"

After several hours of waiting, crews from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife tranquilized the bear after they set up netting to catch him. But he did not fall.

At that point, firefighters used their tower ladder to get close and pull the bear into their bucket. On the ground, crews tagged him and even tattooed his lip.

"They tattoo his inner lip so if they ever come in contact with this bear again, they can identify him," said Morristown fire Chief Robert Flannegan.

Word of what was happening spread throughout town. Eloise Rencare and her friend rushed over after school.

"I was just hoping the bear would be OK, because it seemed pretty dangerous to try to get him down from the tree," Rencare said.

Officials planned to release the bear to a state park in western Morris County once he woke up.