Principal James Marsh of Zela Elementary in Nicholls County, Virginia said that people at the school had seen a bear roaming around the area.
As a precaution, they began securing their dumpsters outside the school with a steel rod to keep the bears out.
It was a Monday and first things first. Principal Marsh had to remove the steel rod that kept it locked and away from the bears that were recently spotted in the area.
It was very much routine work for Principal Marsh and thought nothing of it.
Principal Marsh removed the rod, which was on top of the dumpster lid, and moved to unlock the other side of the rod. He hadn’t reached the other side yet when the lid moved.
When Principal Marsh realized it was a bear, he dropped the rod and ran off in the other direction.
Another staff member had opened the door from the school but closed it immediately when she saw the bear.
When they saw the coast was clear, the staff member opened the door again and the principal came back. He was out of breath from the scare and from running off.
“I think the bear was as scared of the principal as the principal was the bear,” Superintendent Donna Burge-Tetrick said.
If the bear went towards the school, it would have been a different story to report. We’re glad no one was hurt during this scare, not even the bear.
“You put trash in a dumpster, but you don’t expect anything to come out! That was an unexpected surprise!” Principal Marsh recalled. “It all happened so fast, and I am glad that nobody got hurt, and I can laugh about it now! For my students’ and staff safety though, I would prefer this bear find his meals elsewhere.”
Upon the review of their security footage, they discovered that the bear was able to get in and out of the dumpster, even with the steel rod.
“He was strong enough to take one paw and lift that metal bar up, and he simply crawled in, he wiggled his way in,” Principal Marsh shared. “The footage showed that he had done that repeatedly. I’ve had people ask me if he was locked in there. No. He could come and go as he pleased.”
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