CANNON BEACH, Ore. — Editor's note: The Haystack Rock area reopened on Monday morning after authorities concluded the cougar had departed. Read the update here.
The beach at iconic Haystack Rock near Cannon Beach was closed to the public into Sunday afternoon as officials respond to sightings of a cougar on the rock formation.
According to social media reports, witnesses saw a cougar on the rock sometime after the sun came up Sunday morning.
After the closure, the KGW camera at Cannon Beach showed showed a stretch of sand unusually bare for a sunny Sunday morning out in front of Haystack Rock.
Before 1 p.m. on Sunday, the Cannon Beach Police department provided an update on the situation. They said that there was indeed an adult mountain lion still on Haystack Rock, and they had the beach between the rock and the dunes closed so the cougar will have an avenue to escape.
Police, fire crews and state wildlife officials were all on-scene, "working to ensure public safety and the welfare of the animal." Cannon Beach police requested that the public avoid the area until otherwise notified.
"We ask for your help and patience as we work through this unique situation," the agency said.
According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Haystack Rock is a designated wilderness area protected as part of the Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge. The rock serves as a nesting habitat for a number of seabird species, including tufted puffins.
This is the second time cougars have reportedly been spotted on the northern Oregon coast in the past several days.
On Friday, the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department closed the eastern section of the Loop Trail at Nehalem Bay State Park, 16 miles south of Cannon Beach, due to multiple cougar sightings there.
This is a developing story and will be updated with more details as they emerge.