EAST POINT, Fla. (WMBB) — Franklin County has seen a larger-than-normal number of bears in the last few months.
Sheriff’s A.J. Smith had complained that state officials weren’t paying enough attention to the problem.
“We’ve heard from a lot of people that are concerned about the community the safety of the community due to the bear issues here in town,” Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Executive Director Roger Young said.
Young said the FWC is there to help.
“We deeply care about public safety and the safety of the community,” Young said. “And we want to make sure that they know that we’re here to help them through this issue and here to work with them as we deal with this human-bear conflict.”
In September, Franklin County Sheriff A.J. Smith contacted several bureaucrats in Tallahassee to help with the bear problem.
He also urged residents to call FWC if a bear is causing problems on their property.
Wednesday Young paid Franklin County a visit.
“Helping with responsive in response to calls and increasing our communication with the deputies for nuisance bears,” Young said. “We also have a beer management team that will help respond with traps help respond to nuisance bears by placing traps trying to keep the community safe.”
Young said that the bear problem is not new to Franklin County, however, there has been an uptick in calls to both the FWC and sheriff’s office this year.
