The Whistler RCMP are asking all residents - but especially residents living in Blueberry, Alta Vista and Brio - to lock their doors and not leave any food or garbage laying around. They believe the same bear may have broken into at least two houses last week, opening unlocked doors to gain entry.

The first incident was reported on July 7 at 10 p.m. on the 2600 block of Whistler Road. Residents returned home after leaving the house for a short period of time to find a bear in their kitchen. They left immediately and called the RCMP, but the bear left soon after and was gone by the time the police arrived on the scene.

It's likely the same bear - described as large with a blue tag on one ear and a green tag on the other - broke into a home on Archibald Way on July 11 at around 11:45 a.m. Again, the resident had stepped out for a brief period, and came home to find a black bear in her kitchen. She retreated to the bathroom, opened the window and made her escape. The RCMP arrived as the bear was leaving the house and tracked it as it fled south towards the beach at Lakeside Park.

Other homes have been broken into as well.

Conservation Officers have installed a trap in the area for the bear, but residents are being warned to make an effort to remove bear attractants like food and garbage from their homes and properties, and to report any bears that are acting aggressively or getting too close to homes.

"When a bear gets into homes, to say it's a concern is an understatement," said Sergeant Shawn LeMay of the Whistler RCMP. "We run the risk of someone getting hurt or killed if they run into a conflict with a bear."