Bear Shot and Killed in Bathroom by Fla. Homeowner After Breaking into House

A Florida man was in for a shock earlier this week when he discovered that a bear had broken into his rural home — and he was forced to defend himself from the wild animal.

According to local outlets WESH, the Daytona Beach News-Journal and News4Jax, Lake County resident Zeke Clark said a bear entered his house through the open garage door on Friday, Sept. 19, and the animal quickly began to panic when the door automatically closed behind it.

“You can tell the bear freaked out,” Clark told WESH. “There was a bunch of damage in here because he could not get out.”

The bear then made its way further into the home through a door and into the living room, where Clark’s mother-in-law was.

“She just immediately starts screaming, ‘Bear in the house! Bear in the house!’ ” Clark said, recalling to the outlet how their dogs began barking and multiple people started yelling. “I jumped up, and that is when all hell broke loose.”

According to Clark, the bear was presumably scared by the noise and ran to the bathroom, where it jumped into the shower. Clark quickly closed the bathroom door, trapping the bear inside, before grabbing his gun as he said he feared for his family’s safety.

“I was able to get the door back open again. Shot one time inside the bathroom. Shut the door again because the bear was trying to get back out. And then finished by shooting two more times,” he recalled, sharing that the bear died quickly.

Clark told WESH that he dragged the bear using a tarp and called authorities. The outlets reported that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) arrived and removed the bear.

The FWC said no injuries were reported, per the outlets.

“FWC Law Enforcement documented evidence of damage to the exterior doors consistent with entry by a bear,” an FWC spokesperson told the outlets. “FWC Bear Management staff will canvass the community for awareness and education, as well as monitor the area for additional bear activity of concern.”

PEOPLE reached out to the FWC for comment on Saturday, Sept. 20, but did not receive an immediate response.

A number of other incidents involving bears in rural Florida have made headlines this year.

In May, an 89-year-old man and his dog died in a black bear attack in the southwest corner of the state, marking the first-of-its-kind confirmed fatal attack in Florida’s history. Additionally, in August, an Orange County man said he was attacked by a bear while leaving his home.

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In a statement shared with the outlets, the FWC urged Florida residents to be conscious of bear encounters during the fall season.

“As fall approaches, bears are in search of more food to increase their fat reserves for winter. Secure attractants such as food, pet food, garbage, bird feeders, or grills, and lock external doors at night,” the organization said. “Please get in touch with the FWC’s Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922) if you feel threatened by a bear; observe a sick, injured, dead, or orphaned bear; or to report someone who is either harming bears or intentionally feeding them.”

Guidelines for what to do in the event a bear approaches you are available at MyFWC.com/Bear.

According to Clark, he and his family have had several previous bear encounters, as they’ve wandered into their yard and garage before. However, he said Friday’s incident was the scariest so far.

“[It was] pure fear for me,” he told WESH. “I mean, seeing an animal that big come at you. Coming face to face with it. It is not something you want to deal with.”

“This could have been a much worse situation,” he added.