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Video Shows Huge Bear Caught on Camera Breaking into California Gas Station, Snapping at Owner

A convenience store employee recently had a frightening encounter with a visitor of the store. Oddly enough, the encounter at the store was not an isolated incident. Surveillance videos from inside a gas station in Kings Beach, California, have captured a wild bear going inside the convenience store three times in the past month.

On Aug. 12, cameras recorded a bear just inside the front door of the shop near Lake Tahoe. As it stood still and looked around, a customer outside of the store can be seen poking his head through the doorway right behind the bear. The customer then makes a bold move and swats the animal’s rear end with his right hand.

On Aug. 30, the same surveillance cameras caught a huge bear lying down in an aisle eating some of the store’s snacks. The rotund bear is spread out – taking up the width of the aisle – treating itself to the store’s candy and crackers.

The most shocking of the videos was captured just the day before, on Aug. 29. A huge bear is seen starting to walk through the front door of the shop. However, an employee named Paul Heigh, stood directly in front of the bear trying to stop it from walking inside. The bear then lunges out at Heigh, who quickly backs away to safety, and the bear enters the store.

“It was kind of scary, yeah, I’m not going to lie,” Heigh said in an interview. “It’s not in the job description, no, not at all. Fighting off bears was not in the job description.”

More Recent Bear Sitings in Kings Beach, CA

The gas station wasn’t the only local store to receive unwanted large furry visitors in recent history. Another video of a bear went viral on Aug. 15 when one walked into a Safeway grocery store. The bear wondered inside the grocery store, searched around for something to eat, and exited after a brief shopping trip. The huge beast left the grocery store with a peculiar meal – a bag of Tostitos chips.

Adina Baidoo, the woman who shot the viral video, said she almost walked right into the bear when another shopper warned her.

“This actual bear, right there, that I almost walked into, has gone into Safeway and has decided … that he is going to go shopping,” Baidoo said in the video.

Kings Beach, CA is located on the shore of Lake Tahoe. Officials warn that the community’s proximity to open land means wild animals and people can frequently run into one another. Specifically, visitors and residents alike must be extremely cautious of large predators like bears and mountain lions.

The county recommends taking precautions, because of the wildlife in the area. They suggest feeding pets inside and using snap-on lids to secure garbage cans. Mainly to avoid leaving food and other trash out that may attract animals looking for a meal. Bears are also attracted to compost piles, fruit trees and bushes, officials have warned.

[H/T FOX News]