Man finds bear in living room as Japan readies license to kill

TOKYO, Japan — A man in rural Japan found a bear snuggled up in his living room, local media reported Tuesday, as the government prepares to relax laws on shooting the fearsome creatures.

Reports said a man in snowy Fukushima region on Monday evening found a bear lying under his kotatsu -- a low table with a heating element underneath and a surrounding blanket that is common in Japanese houses.

"I came home from work and there was a bear with its head shoved into the kotatsu," the man was quoted as saying. The bear was said to be about 90 centimetres (three feet) long.

The man, who is in his 60s and lives alone, fled to a neighbour's place and phoned the police before returning over an hour later to find the bear and his food scattered around.

Police urged nearby residents to evacuate or lock their doors, according to Kyodo News. No injuries were reported.

Public broadcaster NHK said around midday on Tuesday that the bear was still inside the house, showing footage of police among the tall trees and heavy snow around the dwelling.

It was the latest in a series of human encounters with bears in recent years that have prompted the Japanese government to propose loosening restrictions on shooting the animals.

The plan, set to take effect next year, will give local governments the power to authorise hunters to carry out "emergency shootings" even in more populated areas.

Experts say the dwindling human population in rural areas of Japan is causing hungry bears to come closer to towns.

Other factors include climate change affecting the omnivores' food supply and their hibernation times. This summer was tied for Japan's warmest on record.

There were a record six human fatalities from attacks and more than 9,000 bears killed in Japan in the previous fiscal year.

Earlier this month, a bear rampaged through a supermarket in northern Akita region for two days before being lured out with food coated in honey.

It wounded a 47-year-old-man in the supermarket before shoppers were evacuated and the bear laid waste to the meat department.