Overview
- Spectators filmed the bear walking calmly along the cleared parade route in Gatlinburg during the event’s 50th year.
- Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency representative Matt Cameron said a habituated bear may eventually have to be euthanized if it begins seeking people as a food source.
- The same bear was later reported rummaging through trash cans, reinforcing officials’ concerns about food conditioning.
- City officials highlighted renewed investments in bear‑proof garbage cans and dumpsters and urged proper use to reduce attractants.
- Gatlinburg borders Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which the city says is home to roughly 1,500 bears, making human–bear encounters a recurring challenge.