Driver Records Wild Video After Finding Bear Stuck Atop Utility Pole

In a video that has gone viral across social media this week, a bear was captured stuck on top of a utility pole in New Mexico.

While driving from New Mexico to Oklahoma, Shannon Mullens recorded the shocking video of the large animal aggressively panting on top of the pole on the side of Highway 56.

“We really didn’t believe what we saw at first, so we turned around to get another look,” Mullens told Storyful. “At first, we thought the bear was dead, until we got closer to it and then we realized he was still alive.”

Mullens and her fellow passenger immediately called 911, as heard in the background of the video. In the clip, you can hear the dispatchers informing Mullens that they have already received many calls about the bear and notified state officials, but they could not tranquilize it and said there was nothing they could do.

“We just hope that the bear was able to get down safely,” Mullens said.

Unfortunately, that was not the case. Robin Dawson, another witness of the incident, said in Facebook post that the bear was electrocuted and died before the New Mexico Department of Wildlife could rescue it.

The department told The New York Post that “despite the best efforts of local authorities,” the animal was fatally electrocuted.

Wildlife experts said the bear’s head-scratching decision to climb the pole was most likely caused by it being frightened by a person or traffic. When bears are frightened, they are likely to climb trees to escape potential danger.