Oct 16, 2007 8:13 pm US/Pacific
Deer Smashes Through N.J. Classroom Window
ABERDEEN TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) ―
There were some exhilarating, even scary moments Tuesday morning for some elementary school students in New Jersey.
A deer crashed into their classroom.
It happened without warning and it was caught on surveillance camera.
Aberdeen Township's Lloyd Road Elementary school opens it doors to all who wish to attend.
But officials drew the line Tuesday when a large deer decided to jump through a closed glass window and drop in on Zachary Castaneda's fifth grade vocabulary lesson.
"All I heard was a big bang, and then I saw the glass broken," Castaneda said. "Then I saw the animal right there."
Added teacher Bonnie McCollough: "It was extraordinary to say the least, very scary."
The incident happened at about 10 a.m. EDT The classroom was packed with students.
Luckily the deer, which teachers estimate weighed about 300 pounds, just kept running out of the classroom.
"No one was injured. No one was hurt at the time," Assistant Principal Richard Abrahamsen said. "(The deer) made a right turn at he hallway, went up the hallway."
There's a large wooded area adjacent to the school and deer are a familiar sight in this area, but they've never broken into a classroom. So administrators treated the incident like any other intrusion and put the school on lockdown.
"All of the classroom doors were closed," Principal Pat O'Keefe said. "I advised the entire school population because there was a deer in the building. I didn't want them to be worried about something perhaps more serious."
Several teachers eventually cornered the deer in the cafeteria, and let it run out the back door.
So what could explain this erratic behavior? What else: hormones.
State environmental officials say this is the peak mating season for deer.
Administrators say this is the first and hopefully the last time a deer barges into their school.
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