FORT MYERS, FL. -- If you take a walk through Three Oaks Elementary school, home of the bears, you'll see signs of the schools mascot. From painted bear paws to bear banners. But when a parent spotted a real bear near the school during student arrival, the principal put the school into a partial lockdown.
All 800 students had to wait it out in their classroom. "I just waited it out to see if the school called me to pick her up or anything," said Rosa Lopez, whose daughter attends Three Oaks.
But parents were a little afraid for their kids once the school went on a second partial lockdown after the bear revisited Three Oaks, around 10AM. "It is very scary because these kids are so small, they wouldn't be able to defend themselves," said Jamie Sain, whose son and daughter both go to Three Oaks.
The Florida Wildlife Commission indicated the bear posed no threat to the school and they had a plan if it returned. "They've talked about trapping the bear and relocating the bear if the bear is indeed a threat to anyone here in the community," said Ken Dobson, whose the safety and security administrator for Lee County Schools.
