Japan family finds bear in kitchen, calls police

An adult black bear is shown in a field in this undated image. (File photo/Supplied/Ministry of Nature Resources)

TOKYO - A family in northern Japan called police after finding a bear in their kitchen, an official said Wednesday, as anxiety over the animals grows following a surge in deadly maulings.

Bears have killed at least five people in Japan since April 1, all in the northern region of Tohoku, after a record 13 fatal attacks across the country in the last fiscal year, according to the environment ministry.

Police in the northern region of Iwate, which is part of Tohoku, received a call Monday evening from a family saying a bear had intruded into their home.

The animal “opened the fridge, scattering its content nearby,” a local police official told AFP, declining to be named.

Footprints suggest the bear then “made its way out through a back door adjacent to the kitchen and also hunted through a bin for food waste,” the official said.

The incident occurred in the town of Shizukuishi, where at least four other households have reported bear intrusions since July 5, he added.

In recent months there has been a jump in sightings after the bears emerged from hibernation, and more bears have been straying into towns and cities.

In June, dozens of police, hunters and city officials needed four days to trap a bear roaming Utsunomiya, north of Tokyo, forcing mass school closures.

Before that another bear described as “extremely intelligent” -- it opened a window and turned on a tap -- attacked four people at two factories in Fukushima and remained at large for days.

Scientists attribute the sharp rise in incidents to an increase in the bears’ population, a declining number of people in rural areas and other factors including variations in the availability of bears’ usual food.