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A black bear instead of golden mice: The Magic Kingdom theme park had to temporarily close some rides
Photo: John Raoux / AP
An apparently hungry black bear on Monday caused a temporary closure of several attractions at Disney's Magic Kingdom theme park in the US state of Florida. 15 popular rides were closed in the theme park near Orlando after the black bear was spotted in a tree of the attraction "Enchanted Kingdom", reported the TV channel Fox News, among others. Among the temporarily closed rides were the ghost train "Haunted Mansion" and the theme ride "Pirates of the Caribbean".
"In the fall, bears are more active in foraging to build up fat stores for the winter," Lisa Thompson told the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. So this bear probably came to the park in search of food, she added. Normally, it is best to let the bears move on in peace. In this case, however, "the full-grown bear" was "safely" captured and taken from the amusement park to a forest, Thompson continued.
The Disney World theme park near Orlando covers an area of 11,000 hectares, making it larger than the city of Paris.
phw/AFP