Bears are actualy getting to be an issue in COnnecticut of all places and have been in southern New York State/northern N.J. for a while now, in places you wouldn't think it. Saw one in the parking lot of where I was working in Bloomfield CT (Hartford suburbs), in an industrial park in the middle of the day. Same locale is the ONLY time I have ever seen bobcats, and three (mom with teen kits) at the same time. NOT in the woods, NOT with miles of forest around, some of the busiest industrial areas around Hartford.
We need to remember these guys have a right to be here too, but not in our garbage, especially when it's locked in a trailer. The Yellowstone bears have learned to break into cars, so I'm not surprised they learned to bust into Tom's shed. I'm with J.Moore; they can peel back a car panel and bust safety glass, tear through plywood and sheet metal. One of my Japanese gardening aquaintances in Canada had to endure a week of sleepless nights to shoot the one that was trying to kill his horse (by breaking into a well built stable of hewn timber). Once an idea is in their heads they are hard to dissuade...
Good luck Tom. This is a tough issue and I wish you the best of outcomes; hopefully with everyone going their seperate ways. Check in with your local officials about moving nuisance bears; some states do, some don't...
HG