Wildlife workers had an unusual rescue in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Thursday.

They were called in when a bear, estimated at 3 to 4 years old, became trapped in a storm drain, KUSA reported.

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Officers did not handle the bear because, they told KUSA, that once they touch it, it must be tagged. The bear will then have a strike against it, making it a step closer to having to be put down.

Officials instead used nonlethal rubber slugs to get the bear to leave the storm drain and return to nature.

Officials with the Colorado Parks and Wildlife said that the bear may have entered the drain because there was an open garbage can and fallen branches from a tree that were filled with berries nearby, KUSA reported.

About six minutes after officials removed a manhole cover, the bear popped its head out and scampered away.

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Credit: CPW SE Region/Twitter

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Credit: CPW SE Region/Twitter

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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