Wisconsin family saves bear with plastic tub stuck on head

Family saves bear with tub on its head

Credit: Tricia Hurt via Storyful Marsh-Miller Lake, Wisconsin

BLOOMER, Wis. - A Wisconsin family boating on a lake in Chippewa County saved a black bear swimming with its head stuck in a plastic container on Saturday, June 27.

Tricia Hurt said she and her husband, Brian, and their son, Brady were heading back to shore from a fishing trip on Marsh-Miller Lake when they spotted the bear.

Tricia posted a video of their attempts to free the bear from the tub. She comments in the video that the bear appears to be a juvenile.

On their first attempt, Brian gets his hands on the tub, but the bear shakes itself loose and tries to swim away.

They circle the bear, but it gets away again.

bear gets loose from tub on head storyful wisconsin

Tricia suggests they move their boat away from the swimming bear and circle back around.

This time, Brian gets his hands firmly around the tub and pulls it off the bear's head.

The bear shakes off its disorientation and continues swimming to shore. Tricia said the bear made it safely to shore.

"Never dreamt we would ever do this in our life time. Out on Marshmiller Lake yesterday with Brian Hurt and Brady Hurt when we spotted this poor bear. He made it to shore after all that," Tricia said in her video post on social media.