School closed due to feral cat inside building

Anne Arundel County schools in Maryland weren't taking any chances on Friday morning. Richard Henry Lee Elementary School in Glen Burnie closed due to what officials said was a "building safety" issue after a feral cat wandered in. The feline, whose size and breed have yet to be disclosed, was detected before students got into the building.



A teacher noticed the cat in her classroom at 7:30am, but it ran away. School officials then kept around 500 students outside of the building, which typically starts at 8:45am. A decision to close the school was made at 9:45am. School officials said they're working with police and Animal Control to capture the animal.

Robin Catlett, with the Anne Arundel County Animal Control, said the situation is still up in the air. The cat has not been identified by Animal Control yet, so they’re unsure of how they will proceed if they find the cat, Catlett said. "It would really depend on all the facts," she said.



Schools spokesman Bob Mosier said: "We have no idea the health status of the cat and certainly, we weren't going to put the nearly 500 students here in potential danger by having them in a building where a frightened cat might start running around, so we made a decision to close the school. Hopefully we'll trap it." Mosier added that it was too early to consider what happens if the cat is not found. "We’re hoping this ends far sooner rather than later," he said.