Wild bear captured in Utsunomiya after three-day hunt that closed nearly 100 schools north of Tokyo

The hunt ends

A wild black bear that had been roaming the city of Utsunomiya, about 100 kilometres north of Tokyo, was captured on Tuesday 9 June after a three-day operation involving dozens of police officers, hunters and municipal officials. The adult bear, estimated to weigh around 100 kilograms, was shot with a tranquilliser gun after being cornered in a residential area. A local newspaper, the Shimotsuke Shimbun, reported that two tranquilliser darts failed before a third succeeded. The animal was loaded into a cage on the back of a vehicle and driven away. The city has not yet decided what to do with it.

My child goes to the nearby primary school… and there were reports that a bear had been spotted in the area. Then I watched the news and saw our house… I was so surprised. This is the first time I have heard of a wild bear in Utsunomiya.

Schools shut and residents confined

The first sighting occurred on Saturday 6 June in a residential part of the city. Over the following days the bear was seen near a middle school, a shopping arcade, a university campus and a wholesale market. In response, the city closed all 94 of its public primary and middle schools on Monday and Tuesday, and announced that schools would remain closed on Wednesday due to a report of a possible second bear. Residents were told to stay indoors, and police officers armed with long sticks and metal shields blocked off sections of the city. The university also cancelled all classes after the bear was spotted near its campus on Tuesday.

It is very worrying for the safety of the children and for the school staff. We are monitoring the situation closely.

A growing national problem

Bear attacks and sightings in urban areas have been rising across Japan. The country recorded 238 victims in the 2025 fiscal year, including 13 deaths, according to the environment ministry. In 2026, up to March, sightings exceeded 50,000, more than double the previous record set in 2024. Experts cited by Sky News attribute the increase to climate change reducing the supply of natural food such as acorns and beechnuts, while the depopulation of rural areas has emboldened bears to approach human settlements. Asiatic black bears are listed as vulnerable worldwide, but their numbers are estimated to have tripled in Japan since 2012, aided by a decline in hunting.

The Fukushima bear still at large

While the Utsunomiya bear was captured, a separate bear in Fukushima prefecture remains on the loose. That animal injured four people the previous week and escaped from a building where it had been confined by opening a window and climbing over security barriers. The mayor of the town, Yuki Baba, described the bear as "extremely intelligent" after it was observed drinking from a tap.