A Summerland resident was stunned Friday, April 5, when she saw a bear carry away her neighbour鈥檚 garbage bin.

Mikaila Johnson posted photos in a local Facebook group of the hungry animal picking up the can and taking it away from the Cedar Avenue home.

She shared the pictures to warn anyone in the area about the bear, adding that 鈥渢he person鈥檚 garbage bin in the photo was empty.鈥�

The encounter comes one month after WildsafeBC told directors at the Regional District of the Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) that there continues to be a 鈥渉igh number鈥� of black bear conflicts across the region.

Shelley Fiorito, coordinator at the provincial conservation group, said South Okanagan residents have mostly been good at managing their garbage to avoid attracting bears.

Bears have been able to determine, however, the amount of time they have between when garbage bins are set out and when collection occurs, local audits have shown.

There were four related audits conducted across the region in 2023.

LAst fall the RDOS urged residents to take precautions with their bins, after data from Conservation Officer Service showed that 60 per cent of their calls from 2014 to 2021 for black bears were related to garbage.