Cubs’ chilling cries echo from dumpster as officials rescue them, Colorado video shows

The chilling cries of bear cubs led officials to find three cubs trapped in a Colorado dumpster, video shows.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office performed a “heroic middle-of-the-night rescue” this week after bear cubs fell into a dumpster and couldn’t get out, officials said.

“When deputies arrived, they heard the cubs’ unmistakable cries from the dumpster, which was closed and had a metal fence on all sides,” Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday on Facebook.

The cub’s mom was guarding her babies and wouldn’t let anyone near the dumpster to help the cubs, making the rescue more difficult, officials said. The cubs’ haunting cries echoed throughout the area as officials worked to save them, video shows.

“Deputies worked together to keep an eye on mom while safely flipping open the dumpster lids,” the sheriff’s office said. “Two cubs immediately scrambled out while a third, affectionately referred to as sweet pea in the video, needed a little extra help to rejoin the family.”

The bear family was reunited, but Colorado Parks and Wildlife said on Twitter that the cubs wouldn’t have been stuck if people secured their garbage.

Garbage can kill bears, Colorado Parks and Wildlife said on its website. People should never leave trash or recyclables out overnight because empty cans and boxes can still smell like food to a bear. If trash has to go out overnight, people should invest in a bear-proof container, Colorado Parks and Wildlife said.

“Much of what people throw away smells like food to a hungry bear. Standard metal or plastic trash cans won’t keep out bears,” wildlife officials said. “Once bears learn where it’s easy to get at the garbage, they’ll come back again and again.”

This story was originally published July 30, 2020 at 1:15 PM with the headline "Cubs’ chilling cries echo from dumpster as officials rescue them, Colorado video shows."