Tourists smash SUV window to free black bear trapped inside their vehicle in Gatlinburg

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A group of tourists in Tennessee went to some pretty extreme lengths last week to rescue a black bear that had gotten itself locked inside their SUV.

Video of the chaotic scene shows the bear moving around inside the vehicle while the group tries to figure out how to get it out. One man first attempts to use what appears to be a Slim Jim tool to unlock one of the front doors from the outside.

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No luck. So they moved on to Plan B: sacrifice the window.

Black bear stands on hind legs inspecting a green car on a forest road.

Another man grabbed a large rock and smashed out the rear window of the SUV. Once the glass shattered, all three people immediately took off running for dear life.

Seconds later, the huge bear crawled through the broken window and made its escape.

The incident, which was captured on video, happened in Gatlinburg, where encounters between people and black bears are pretty much a daily occurrence during warmer months. Great Smoky Mountains National Park is home to approximately 1,900 American black bears and sees around 12 million visitors each year.

It was not clear exactly how the bear got into the SUV, but it was likely looking for food when it accidentally locked itself inside. And apparently, the keys got locked inside with the animal.

All things considered, this was a happy ending for the bear. It doesn’t always work out that way.

Earlier this month, Colorado Parks and Wildlife reported that a black bear died after getting trapped inside an unlocked vehicle in Colorado Springs. The bear apparently opened the vehicle door, climbed inside and then became trapped when the door closed behind it.

The animal tore apart the interior while trying to escape but was not discovered for several days.

Black bear mother relaxing on a boulder looking at the camera in New Hartford Connecticut

Colorado Parks and Wildlife officer Travis Sauder told The Colorado Springs Gazette that bears are more than capable of getting themselves into vehicles — getting back out can be the problem.

“Typically what happens is they pull the door open, get in, get their food, and then they leave,” Sauder said. “But sometimes the door closes behind them and they have trouble figuring out how to get out.”

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That wasn’t even the only recent case in Colorado.

On July 29, another black bear got inside an unlocked vehicle in Manitou Springs and spent hours trapped inside, destroying much of the interior as it tried to escape. Firefighters eventually freed the bear, which escaped into nearby Pike National Forest before wildlife officials could relocate it.

But it’s best for everyone involved (humans, bears and cars) to avoid this situation altogether.

The National Park Service specifically warns visitors in the Smoky Mountains to lock their vehicles and not to leave food, garbage or other scented items inside.

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And — as these folks in Gatlinburg learned the hard way — maybe double-check that your keys aren’t in there, either.

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