Deputies free three bears locked inside minivan

Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Sheriff's deputies in North Carolina used a length of rope to free a trio of bears that became locked inside a minivan.

Avery County Deputies Thomas Guinn and Scott Bray responded to a report of a bear cub on top of a minivan and they arrived to find there were three more bears inside the vehicle.

The deputies found the van's battery had died, so they used a key to unlock a front door.

"I did not realize the bear came up to the driver side seat when I was trying to unlock the door and it caught me off guard when it slapped the window real hard, and I jumped," Bray told Spectrum News.

They hooked a rope to the door handle to open it from a safe distance, allowing the mother bear to escape.

Two cubs in the back seat appeared unable to climb to the front, so Bray reached in to unlock the back door, letting the young bruins free.

Gthe deputies said there was severe damage to the inside of the van.

"You can't just take for granted that you're up in the mountains and there's not a whole lot of population of people that you would normally lock your doors to keep people out. Same thing goes for animals. They are able to unlock vehicles and get in there," Bray said.