WINSTED, Conn. (AP) — Trapped inside a car, the adult black bear and cub thrashed about. The horn was blaring and the radio blasting. Outside the car, a second cub ran around in apparent distress by the Connecticut home.
State environmental conservation police were called by the startled vehicle owner on the morning of July 15. They opened a door, and the two bears ran off into the woods safe and sound with the third bear. The car's interior, however, wasn't so fortunate: It was completely torn apart.
The incident in Winsted, in the state's northwest corner not far from Massachusetts, was documented in photos and video taken by the car's owner, who captured images of the bears in the car and the resulting destruction on a cellphone. Officials believe they got in the vehicle by opening a door, but it's not clear how the door then closed.
Over a week, there have been three episodes involving bears in Connecticut that were publicly reported by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection — another sign of the increasing black bear population in the state.
On Saturday, a woman reported being bitten by a black bear in a backyard in Cheshire. She suffered minor injuries and declined treatment, officials said. Environmental conservation police found and euthanized the bear, which was taken away for testing.
On Sunday, a nearly 500-pound (227-kilogram) black bear was struck and killed by a car on a highway in Torrington, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said.
While bears have been breaking into cars, trash bins and homes in the western U.S. for a long time, such incidents were rare in Connecticut a few decades ago. They're now a growing phenomenon.
In June, a black bear was shot to death in Canton by a person who claimed self-defense. Last year, a bear barged into a bakery in Avon, scared employees and helped itself to 60 cupcakes before ambling away. In 2022, a bear damaged the insides of two vehicles in Cornwall.
There also have been a few non-fatal bear attacks on humans reported in the state over the past two years, and an increasing number of bears entering homes, state officials say.
“Always keep your car doors locked if bears occur in your area and never allow them easy access to human-sourced food," Ethan Van Ness, a senior adviser at the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, said in a statement.
State officials said bears began returning to the region in the 1980s and their populations have been steadily increasing. There are now an estimated 1,000 to 1,200 bears in Connecticut, with sightings in all 169 towns in recent years but more concentrated in the state's northwestern corner.
This July 15, 2024, photo shows the damage caused by a bear and cub that broke into a car, and became trapped inside in Winsted, CT, until freed by state environmental conservation police. It turned out to be the first of three episodes involving bears in Connecticut over six days that were publicly reported by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection — another sign of the increasing black bear population in the state. (AP Photo)
This July 15, 2024, photo shows the damage caused by a bear and cub that broke into a car, and became trapped inside, in Winsted, CT, until freed by state environmental conservation police. It turned out to be the first of three episodes involving bears in Connecticut over six days that were publicly reported by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection — another sign of the increasing black bear population in the state. (AP Photo)
This July 15, 2024, photo shows the damage caused by a bear and cub that broke into a car, and became trapped inside, in Winsted, CT, until freed by state environmental conservation police. It turned out to be the first of three episodes involving bears in Connecticut over six days that were publicly reported by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection — another sign of the increasing black bear population in the state. (AP Photo)
A bear that broke into a car in Winsted, CT, is visible through the vehicle's front window in this July 15, 2024, photo. It turned out to be the first of three episodes involving bears in Connecticut over six days that were publicly reported by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection — another sign of the increasing black bear population in the state. (AP Photo)
CHICAGO (AP) — Clarke Schmidt and Nestor Cortes combined on a four-hitter, and the New York Yankees clinched their 32nd straight winning season by blanking the Chicago Cubs 2-0 on Saturday.
Schmidt pitched 4 2/3 innings of four-hit ball in his first big league game since May 26. Cortes (9-10) closed it out in his first relief appearance since 2021.
Coupled with Baltimore's 7-1 loss to Tampa Bay, New York moved back into first in the AL East. The Yankees (82-60) lead the Orioles by a half-game.
Cortes admitted he was upset when he learned he was going to pitch in relief.
“I’m never going to back down from a challenge,” Cortes said. “I’m never going to leave my teammates out to dry. You’re always going to get my best effort no matter if I’m happy or not. That’s what I did today. I came out there and proved I can be put in any situation. From here on out, if that’s my role, I’ll accept it.”
Schmidt had been sidelined by a right lat strain. He threw 75 pitches, 44 for strikes.
"I felt like I still had a lot of strength and I wasn’t fatiguing at all,” Schmidt said.
New York posted its second straight shutout to secure its first series win since it took two of three against Colorado from Aug. 23-25. The 32 straight seasons with a winning record is the second-longest such period in major league history, trailing a run of 39 consecutive seasons for the Yankees from 1926-64.
Chicago (72-70) has lost four of five on a crucial homestand as it tries to rally in the race for the third NL wild card. It beat Pittsburgh 12-0 on Wednesday, but it has managed a total of three other runs in its last five games, getting shut out three times.
“We feel like we have a good enough ballclub to be in the playoffs and in the picture, but we’re going to have to play a little bit better and keep pushing here,” left fielder Ian Happ said.
Cubs right-hander Javier Assad (7-5) allowed one earned run and three hits in 5 2/3 innings.
New York scored its first run when Austin Wells drove in Gleyber Torres with a groundout in the first. The Yankees made it 2-0 in the sixth when Aaron Judge swiped third as part of a double steal and scampered home on catcher Christian Bethancourt’s throwing error.
Judge, who leads the majors with 51 homers, went 0 for 3 with a walk. He hasn’t homered in 11 games in his longest streak of the season.
The Cubs had their best scoring opportunity in the fifth. Pete Crow-Armstrong singled with one out, but was caught stealing. Patrick Wisdom then tripled to right, but he was stranded when Cortes got Bethancourt to foul out.
“He handled it really well, came into a high-leverage situation with a runner on third and got the job done,” Wells said of Cortes. “From there, cruised.”
Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo heard more cheers in his second game back at Wrigley Field since he was traded by Chicago to New York in July 2021. He tipped his cap before his first at-bat and reached second on Crow-Armstrong’s dropped catch in center.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Yankees: Schmidt and RHP Ian Hamilton (right lat strain) were reinstated from the 60-day injured list before the game. RHPs Phil Bickford and Nick Burdi were designated for assignment.
Cubs: LHP Justin Steele (left elbow tendinitis) was scheduled to play catch Saturday. He went on the 15-day IL on Wednesday. ... RHP Hayden Wesneski (right forearm strain) threw an inning at Triple-A Iowa.
UP NEXT
RHP Gerrit Cole (6-3, 3.65 ERA) is slated to start for New York on Sunday on his 34th birthday. RHP Jameson Taillon (9-8, 3.66 ERA) takes the mound for Chicago in the finale of the weekend set. Taillon went 22-11 with a 4.08 ERA with the Yankees in 2021 and 2022.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
New York Yankees starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt reacts in the dugout after being pulled during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)
New York Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton, right, celebrates with teammate Gleyber Torres (25) after Torres scored on an Austin Wells ground out during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)
Chicago Cubs starter Javier Assad delivers a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees in Chicago, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge celebrates with teammates in the dugout after scoring on a throwing error by the catcher during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)
New York Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt delivers a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)
