Tooele Residents Cautioned About Cougars After Two Reported Sightings

TOOELE, Utah — Police issued an alert Monday urging residents to be watchful, following two reported mountain lion sightings over the weekend.

The first sighting was called into dispatch at 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning in the area of Tahoe and Ontario streets, according to Tooele Police Sgt. Jeremy Hansen.

The second was called in Sunday at around 7:40 p.m. on the hill behind Sterling Elementary, 135 S. 7^th St.

In both cases, officers investigated and were not able to find the cougar in the area.

The wild animal only appeared as a small speck in a photo sent to KSL that purportedly captured the animal as it roamed the hillside Sunday.

“It’s sort of nerve-racking because you have children down there and the children really can’t defend themselves,” said resident Eric Egelund. “It’s an animal that can do some damage and quite a bit of harm to a human being.”

Egelund said he had seen deer carcasses over the years and was wary of the potential for cougars to ingress into neighborhoods.

Longtime resident Dave Faddis, who lives within a block of Sunday’s reported sighting, said he had never seen a cougar in the city.

“I don’t even see coyotes!” he said.

Tooele City Police Department, in its alert posted to Facebook, encouraged residents to not approach the mountain lion and to report future sightings to Tooele County Dispatch at 435-882-5600.