The Gainesville Police Department and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources are tracking a bear that was seen wandering through downtown Gainesville.
The Georgia DNR confirmed that this is the same bear that was spotted in Alpharetta last Sunday near the Avalon.
Gainesville Chief of Police Jay Parrish said the bear was last seen on Saturday around 2 p.m. at E.E. Butler Parkway. At last report, the animal was headed toward Fair Street.
The bear was first seen in Gainesville on Friday near the Cresswind subdivision.
"This particular bear, she's been on quite a journey," said Melissa Cummings, a spokeswoman for the DNR's department of wildlife resources. "She's been in a couple of different states. And now she appears to be headed back up towards north Georgia. And that is absolutely the goal."
Cummings said the DNR wants the bear to keep moving on her own, and that the department wants to avoid a forceful relocation.
"We just want to make sure that there's not a situation that interferes with public safety or anything like that," Cummings said. "So the Gainesville Police Department is keeping an eye on her. They're keeping our staff, our biologists and game management folks informed of where she is."
The bear is wearing a tracking collar that she received in Tennesee.
According to Parrish, the bear has not hurt anyone and it has not caused damage to any businesses.
“Stay away from it,” Parrish advised. “If you see it, just make sure you're safe. He won't bother you if you don't bother it.”
In a Facebook post, the police department also reminded citizens not to call 911 about the bear unless absolutely necessary..
