Bear alarm in Slovenian capital

LJUBLJANA – A remarkable story is reported from the Slovenian capital city of Ljubljana, which may well trouble the city’s joggers.

Since Thursday there has been a bear alarm in force in Ljubljana after a brown bear was sighted in the municipal park. Citizens were alarmed and a huge search launched. The wild animal is thought to have crossed the motorway that encircles Ljubljana and subsequently hid in the city’s Tivoli park. Officials from the nearby zoo had spotted the animal and stated that it was not one of the zoo’s two bears. The police have started a search. The ministry of agriculture had hurriedly issued a set of tips about what to do if one should find one’s self eye to eye with a bear. The police have warned citizens to steer clear of the area and report any bear sightings. In Slovenia there are about four hundred and thirty bears living in the wild. They very rarely come near to the areas where people live.