I don't know what year it was, it came to me via e-mail. Here is the narative that came with it:


A 400# black bear wandered into a residential neighborhood in Florida.
Black bears half this size have attacked and killed humans across the nation recently
... twice in Florida.

Wildlife officers sedated the bear to safely relocate him,
and that's when things began to go horribly wrong.

A 400# black bear wandered into a residential neighborhood in Florida.
Black bears half this size have attacked and killed humans across the nation recently
... twice in Florida.

Wildlife officers sedated the bear to safely relocate him,
and that's when things began to go horribly wrong.
As he swam further and further out, he became drowsy and started to drown.
But Adam Warwick, a biologist with the Wildlife Commission, wasn't about
to let that happen. Adam went into the water after the bear
... yeah, after a bear … to stop him from going under.
It was a spur of the moment decision.
I had a lot of adrenaline pumping when I saw the helpless bear in the water dying."

He knew the very high risk, considering the powerful bear was scared and could
have easily became aggressive to defend itself, killing him with a single swipe
or bite. B ut the bear somehow seemed to know it was in good hands
It seemed to become calm when under the man's control?
Adam's determination finally got the 400 pound wild creature safely back into shallow water.
Adam suffered only a scratch from the rescue
Once they reached the shore, other team members came to help
The team was able to use a tractor bucket to transport the poor guy
back to his home in Osceola National Forest.
Adam rode with him back home ...
a sight you don't see on the highway every day (neither had a helmet).
where he is safe and happy again and has one honking’ story to tell the grandkids.

If there is anyone here from FL they may recognize the patch on the arm of the uniformed individual in the boat. I have seen FL patches but I don't remember the shape or color.