Early this evening (6/18/2009) Ashland Police Officers responded for a report of a bear wandering through a residential area  located in Ashland.

They did locate what appeared to be a black bear in a small wooded area near Railroad Avenue in the center of town. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries was contacted and recommended that officers and residents leave the bear alone and give it space to find it's way out of this residential area.

We recommend that our citizens stay inside their residences tonight and bring any domestic pets inside as well. This is a common occurrence and we ask our community to contact local police and the Virginia Game Commission if they come into contact with this bear.