William Orange, of Cornwall, New York, says he didn’t even have time to turn on the light in his garage before a small black bear attacked him Sunday night.
“I saw shadows and a dark object. I saw, like, big teeth and I was freaked out,” Orange, a detective with the New York Police Department, told WABC. “I heard a growl and saw big teeth and something grabbed my shirt. I hit it with my forearm and I just ran.”
The “small” black bear had wandered into the garage on Mineral Springs Road through a door that had been left open,” according to a statement from the Cornwall Police Department obtained by PEOPLE.
The bear ripped Orange’s shirt open and sliced the man’s stomach, leaving four deep wounds, according to the statement. He managed to run inside his home and was later treated at the residence before being taken to a local hospital for treatment.
“I guess it could have been a lot worse,” the father of two told WABC. “But it’s more of a graze. I’ll be alright.”
Police have set up a trap to catch the bear, ABC News reported. And the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation’s Law Enforcement and Wildlife Divisions are following up on the incident, police say.
“Although bear attacks are extremely rare in New York, residents are reminded to remove food sources for wild animals whenever possible and if trash is stored in a garage or outbuilding doors should be kept closed whenever possible,” authorities continued in the statement.
In a statement to PEOPLE, an NYPD official said: “This was an off duty incident unrelated to the NYPD.”
The incident marks the latest incident in a string of bear attacks.
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Last month, a Washington state family fought off a bear after it chased and mauled a 10-year-old boy at Yellowstone National Park.
In July, 71-year-old Apryl Rogers suffered a neck fracture, injuries to her face and scalp and even lost her left eye when a black bear attacked her in her Groton, New Hampshire, home.
“I think he was probably nervous,” Rogers told WMUR of the bear last month, noting that the animal used its massive claws to slice the side of her face. “He just about ripped this whole side of my face.”
