Man says he saw bear near Danville cemetery

It took Dennis Francis a moment to realize what he saw moving across the highway while he drove south on U.S. 29 Sunday night.
Francis headed home to Brosville at about 9 p.m. after a visit with his mother when he spotted a bear crossing into Highland Burial Park.
“I thought to myself, ‘That’s a big dog,’” Francis said.
But he quickly discovered it was no canine, so he followed the bear into the cemetery and called 911. While waiting for police to arrive, he tried to block the animal from crossing the small roads into the gravesites because he knew people — including his mother — frequently walked in Highland Burial Park.
A person would be no match for the large creature.
“When he was standing on all four feet, his back was above the tombstones,” Francis said.
Francis said he had seen bears in the mountains before, but never expected to see one in Danville.
By the time police arrived about 15 minutes later, Francis had lost sight of the bear, spotting it again only to have it disappear into the woods.
Danville Police Lt. M.T. White Jr. confirmed that someone called dispatch and reported seeing a bear in Highland Burial Park. However, neither of the two responding officers saw it, White said.
White said dispatch called the game warden, who said the bear was probably thirsty and looking for water. The warden said if it didn’t pose a danger, there’s no reason to try to capture it, White said.
White said he believed the last reported bear sighting in Danville was in the Westover Drive area during the summer of 2006.
Contact John R. Crane at or 434-791-7987.