Update: Bear makes run around ball field, falls asleep
<p>It can't be seen through the foliage, but there is a black bear very high up in one of these tall pine trees next to the parking lot at Woodland Middle School in Coeur d'Alene. Fish and Game are on scene. The children are being kept inside the school as wildlife officials wait for the bear to move down so it can be safely tranquilized with a dart and relocated. </p>
A black bear in a tree is causing a ruckus outside Woodland Middle School this morning.
Idaho Fish and Game are at the scene where the bear is high up in a tall pine tree adjacent to the middle school parking lot on St. Michelle Drive just off Kathleen Avenue.
A worker with the wildlife agency told The Press reporter on scene that the animal is too high up in the tree to safely tranquilize it with a dart, so for now, it's a waiting game until the bear comes down on its own. Fish and Game will then dart it and relocate it.
It's not a safety issue at this time, according to wildlife and school representatives.
Laura Rumpler, spokesperson for the Coeur d'Alene School District, said that parents and guardians were notified through the district's emergency alert system that the animal was near the school.
"Students and staff are safe inside the school," Rumpler said, adding that they will remain there until the situation has been resolved.
The bear's presence is not expected to affect the school day, she said.
Fish and Game personnel said that if need be, they can keep the bear in the tree to prevent it from becoming a safety issue.