WESTCLIFFE, Colo. -- State wildlife officials killed a bear after it attacked a camper who was sleeping in a tent in south-central Colorado.

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The attack happened around midnight Tuesday at the Lake Creek Campground, about 10 miles northwest of Westcliffe in Custer County.

Colorado Division of Wildlife spokesman Todd Malmsbury said a 21-year-old camper from Sawyer, Kan., whose name wasn't released, was attacked.

The victim told wildlife officials that he was sleeping in a tent with two other people when the bear broke through the side. The man woke up to find the bear standing on top of him and kicked to get the animal to leave.

The bear bit his hand and the man grabbed a hatchet and began swinging at the animal. The bear then left the tent after a scuffle that lasted 20-30 seconds. In addition to the bite to his right hand, the man also received injuries to his head, back and upper-right arm.

He was treated at a clinic in Westcliffe before being taken to a hospital in Pueblo, where he was treated and released.

Wildlife manager Al Trujillo said Colorado Division of Wildlife officers, using dogs provided by a local hunting outfitter, tracked and destroyed the bear about 7 a.m.

As a precautionary measure, wildlife officers asked the U.S. Forest Service to close the campground while they monitor other bears in the area.

Trujillo said that the Forest Service had placed bear-proof trash containers at the Lake Creek Campground and that there was no trash lying around to attract bears. But bears had been reported in the area feeding on trash.

Also on Tuesday, authorities tranquilized a bear after it wandered into a neighborhood near an elementary school in Jefferson County. Authorities said the bear would be tagged and moved to another area.

Four campers have been injured by bears in southern Colorado this year.

Wildlife officials killed two other bears after attacks at a Boy Scout camp near Salida earlier this month. The camp has been closed until next season to allow for the installation of bear-proof garbage cans.

In each case, food and trash left in or around campsites attracted bears to the area, wildlife officials say. The three previous attacks -- two near Poncha Springs in Chaffee County and one west of Gardner in Huerfano County -- required campers to be treated and released at nearby hospitals for bite and scratch wounds and bruises.

Drought and a late-spring freeze have combined to leave black bears with little food in areas of south-central Colorado, officials said.

Campers, home and cabin owners and visitors to the state are urged to avoid leaving food, trash, bird feeders, livestock feed, pet food or other attractants outside and accessible to bears. Homeowners should also close and lock lower-story windows and doors in areas where bears are active.

Black bears will be actively feeding from now through early October as they attempt to put on enough fat to get them through hibernation. Bears eat for up to 20 hours a day during this period and can consume up to 20,000 calories in a single day.

State wildlife policy calls for bears that are caught causing twice causing problems in areas populated by humans to be killed.