One minute before Las Animas staff dismissed their students
Friday afternoon, a warning came over the intercom that advised
students to stay close to parents because a mountain lion might be
roving near school grounds.
Gilroy – One minute before Las Animas staff dismissed their students Friday afternoon, a warning came over the intercom that advised students to stay close to parents because a mountain lion might be roving near school grounds.
A parent reported to Las Animas Elementary School secretary Lucy Kestermont that a mountain lion was in a field north of the school, near Christmas Hill Park. However, school staff, outside maintenance workers and teachers who went to the north end of the school after the report did not see the lion.
School staff still notified students and parents waiting outside of the school via the school intercom and called the Gilroy Police Department. Despite student excitement caused by the warning, the dismissal went smoothly, Kestermont said.
The school, which has been in operation at its current location since mid-August, abuts a vacant lot that stretches to Santa Teresa Boulevard. Across the road are foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, which are known mountain lion habitats.
The last reported mountain lion incident in the area was Aug. 16, sheriff’s deputies suspected a mountain lion was responsible for the death of four goats and three sheep at a residence on Cañada Road.
