South coast black bear ‘Boo Boo’ killed in van crash

MARION — Boo Boo, the beloved black bear that had been spotted in South Wareham as recently as late June, died from its injuries after being struck by a van on I-195 two weeks ago, according to Bear Biologist Dave Wattles of Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.

At the time of the accident, the bear disappeared into the woods and state police officials said that there was no reason to believe that it was Boo Boo. However, upon further investigation by the MassWildlife, biologists were able to locate the remains of the bear and are now confident that it is the same bear, according to Wattles.

“We’re 99.9% sure [that it’s the same bear] based on the sightings of the bear and its movements at the time,” he said.

The vehicle involved in the accident was a private medical transport van owned by Alert Ambulance Services that was transporting a patient from New Bedford to a doctor’s appointment, according to an NBC Boston report.

Neither the driver nor the passenger were injured in the accident.

Wattles said that incidents of bears being struck by cars are reported about 30-50 times per year with the vast majority occurring on interstates and state highways as a result of high speeds and traffic volumes.