Black Bear Sighted in Smithfield, May Have Left for Points South

Smithfield homeowners near Smithfield Police headquarters at 215 Pleasant View Ave. alerted officers a Black Bear was raiding their bird feeder in the evening Saturday, June 29, the first of three local sightings of the unexpected ursine. 

DEM has since reported new sightings of a bear in Hopkinton and Exeter in Arcadia Park, said Smithfield Police Captain Michael Rheaume. Though it's likely the same bear, since bears are a rare thing in Rhode Island, Rheaume said residents should still be cautious, in case there's more than one roaming around.

Rheaume said when police vehicles arrived on the scene at the Waterview Drive home at about 7:48 p.m., the noise drove the bear off the residents' property. The bear was later spotted at Log and Mann School Road at 8:30 p.m., then officers spotted it crossing Rte. 295 headed back toward the police station at 8:54 p.m. There have been no sightings since.

The town website has posted a release about the sightings, along with a warning: 

"Remember to NEVER APPROACH A BLACK BEAR and, should you see a bear, please contact the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management at 401-222-3070 or the Smithfield Police Department at 401-231-2500."

The DEM has provided information about black bears on their website, including tips for keeping them out of your back yard: 

Bears can travel long distances in search of available food sources and may end up right in your backyard! It is unhealthy for wild animals to become dependent on humans for survival, so here are some simple tips to keep the bears where they belong.

• Since bird seed has a high fat content and an attractiveness to bears, you 

should remove bird feeders from your yard by mid –April and wait until late 

October or November to put feeders  back out. 

• Keep garbage secured or stored inside  shed/garage until trash-pickup morning. 

• Keep fruit and meat out of compost  piles.

• Clean grills immediately after use to  minimize attractive odor.

• Don’t leave pet food outside over night. 

• NEVER FEED BEARS (they will  become more demanding).