FWC officers use DNA analysis during investigation into deaths in Collier County

COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. – Authorities released a recording Tuesday of the 911 calls that dispatch received after a man and his dog died -- prompting a hunt for black bears in rural southwestern Florida.

The attacks were on Monday morning near State Road 29 in Jerome, a small unincorporated community in Collier County.

One caller reported, “The bear just got the dog; the dog is dead. We went in to check on him in the camper. He is gone. The camper is tore all apart ... One of the bears is still here.”

Robert Markel, a long-time Collier County resident, died. He was 89.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers responded. Three bears were trapped and DNA analysis will be part of the investigation.

The FWC warned the public to be cautious since the bear population has increased, and so have the dangerous encounters.

Markel’s daughter called 911 to report that she had seen a black bear mauling her father’s dog near a house off State Road 29 and she couldn’t find her father.

Officials later announced Markel’s remains had been recovered in a wooded area off SR-29 near Copeland, north of Everglades City.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission urged caution amid an increase in human encounters with black bears.

“We urge residents and visitors to remain vigilant and avoid the area,” FWC Officer George Reynaud said.