‘I’m probably going to get eaten by a bear’: 11-year-old races through dollar store aisles to escape but the beast makes a shocking move at the counter

An 11-year-old boy from Pennsylvania had a scary run-in with a black bear that followed him right into a Family Dollar store in Markleysburg. Cole Frazee had gone to see why his dad was taking so long inside the shop when he noticed the big animal looking straight at him.

Before he could even think about running away, the bear started coming after him. According to the New York Post, Frazee had no choice but to rush inside the store with the animal right on his tail, hoping he could somehow get away from it.

When talking to the media about what happened, Frazee said the bear was really close behind him the whole time. “When it runs after me, I turn around, I run in the store, I’m screaming and stuff. The thing was like a foot and a half away from me,” he said. He really believed something terrible was about to happen to him. “I was like, ‘I’m probably going to get eaten by a bear,” he said, before explaining, “I took a left and the bear went straight.”

This kid showed some serious quick thinking under pressure

Once he got inside, Frazee ran through different parts of the store trying to lose the bear. He found the cashier, who happened to be the only other person there. They both knew they had to leave right away.

Moving as fast as they could, Frazee and the cashier both climbed onto the checkout counter and got ready to run out. “She grabbed her coat, the keys and the phone and we ran out of there. When we ran out of there, we all got in the car,” Frazee said.

Video from security cameras inside the store showed what the bear did right after they left. The big animal jumped right over the same counter where the boy and cashier had been standing just moments before. It stood up over the counter where all the products were kept, then got back down on the ground.

The bear stayed inside the Family Dollar for about 10 minutes before it finally left the building. Frazee said he was really relieved when everything was over and called the whole thing a crazy experience. While this scary moment ended without anyone getting hurt, other wild encounters have been in the news lately, including when Porsha Williams was met by authorities after a Delta flight incident. 

The National Wildlife Federation says that big male black bears can get as heavy as 600 pounds, while female bears usually stay under 200 pounds. The Pennsylvania Game Commission told people that bears are out looking for food right now, which is why people might run into them in places they don’t expect. 

Wildlife experts are telling everyone who lives in the area to be careful and watch out for bears that might be searching for something to eat. In other stories that got people talking, Bill Ackman recently shared his dating advice for young men and got a lot of reactions online.