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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Two black bear sightings were reported on Wednesday in the city, prompting officials to temporarily close the Frame Lake Trail to the public.

The first sighting was reported mid-morning when city employees called in to dispatch at 11:39 a.m.

"They were driving along Franklin Avenue when it ran out in front of them and into the Northland Trailer Park," said Wayne Formaniuk, pumphouse operator for the City of Yellowknife.

The Yellowknife Fire Department was the first department to respond to the call.

The RCMP and emergency medical technicians were at trail entrances to warn citizens of the sighting.

Environment and Natural Resources officers were on site searching for the bear.

It was last spotted along the lake's shore near one of the walking bridges on the south end.

Eyewitness accounts said the bear was not very large, likely to be a cub.

RCMP and wildlife officers scoured the area searching for the bear but presumed that it was scared and had probably fled.

The second sighting came in the early afternoon from Fred Henne Territorial Park.

A mother and its cub entered the park through the front gates of the campground just after noon.

The animals headed towards the northwest end of the park.

No other sightings were reported, according to Judy McLinton of Environment and Natural Resources.

Park officials said bears tend to be more frequently seen around Fred Henne Park this time of the year.