SUMMERSVILLE, W.V. – A principal at a West Virginia elementary school had a little bear scare on Monday when the animal jumped out of a dumpster near campus.
James Marsh, the principal of Zela Elementary School in Summersville, told Storyful that he was removing a lock bar “designed to deter bears” on the dumpster when he encountered the animal.
Surveillance video, which can be seen in the player above, shows Marsh running from the bin as the bear jumps out and bolts from the scene. A woman in the video can also be seen quickly shutting the door when she notices the furry intruder.
No one was injured, and the video shows Marsh and the lady laughing it off.
According to WSAZ, the school received the lock bar from the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources because employees previously found a bear in the dumpster.
The West Virginia DNR went back to the school on Monday to make some improvements to the bar, Marsh told WSAZ.
Marsh told Storyful that surveillance video also showed the bear “squeezing in and out of the dumpster all weekend to dine.”
“I like wildlife and bears but prefer them more than an arm-length away,” Marsh told Storyful. “I guess it had a good meal and a nap...”
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