SEATTLE — A bear cub found badly burned last summer in the largest wildfire in Washington state history has endured a long recovery but is now back in the wild.
Rich Beausoleil with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife says officials released the 2 1/2-year-old cub nicknamed Cinder on Wednesday morning in a central Washington forest. He says the bear was in good shape and “running like a champ” near Wenatchee.
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READ MORE: Cinder the burned black bear preparing for return to the wild
Cinder was found under a horse trailer after the Carlton Complex fire, her paws so scorched that she was pulling herself along by her elbows.
Now healed after stints at a California wildlife center and the Idaho Black Bear Rehabilitation center near Boise, she weighs about 125 pounds.
READ MORE: Black bear cub who survived forest fire slowly nursed back to health
Cinder was released with an orphaned cub she had bonded with during rehab.
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