City of Blaine issues alert on unconfirmed cougar sighting

The city of Blaine issued an alert about an unconfirmed cougar sighting near Blaine school district campus on August 2 but no sightings have followed the initial report. 

Gary McSpadden, operations and maintenance manager for Blaine Public Works Department, said in an email that a Whatcom County contractor spotted what appeared to be a cougar in the green belt just west of Blaine Primary School, near Boblett Street and Mitchell Avenue. Public works notified Blaine Police Department (BPD) and issued a news flash on the city’s website out of an abundance of caution, McSpadden said. The news release was taken down the next day after there were no other sightings.

BPD lieutenant Michael Munden said in an email that officers didn’t find signs of a cougar after responding to the area. BPD officers decided to not follow up on the report because there was no corroborating information. Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) spokesperson Becky Elder said WDFW did not receive a report and did not investigate. 

The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has a map of predatory wildlife incidents, including cougar, wolf or grizzly bears, on its website. The map shows one confirmed cougar sighting in Birch Bay in 2023. A WDFW investigation found that a cougar attacked livestock near Blaine and Bay roads in February.

Cougars are occasionally reported in urban areas because they travel long distances but don’t stay long, according to the WDFW website. In Washington, humans have experienced two fatal cougar attacks and 20 injuries in the past century. 

WDFW recommends people dial 911 to report emergency predatory wildlife incidents. For nonemergency predatory wildlife incidents, people can call 877/933-9847, text the tip to 847411 (TIP411) or submit a report online to wdfw.wa.gov/about/enforcement/report. 

For more information on cougars, visit the WDFW website.