Essex County, New Jersey (WABC) — A wandering bear sighting in Essex County led the South Orange & Maplewood School District to cancel all outdoor activities on Monday as a precautionary measure.
The district’s decision affected several activities, including the open lunch period at Columbia High School and outdoor recess at all other schools within the district.
A school district spokesman indicated that, following the last reported sighting of the bear around 10 a.m., all after-school activities would proceed as planned. Despite this, students and staff were instructed to remain indoors for the rest of the school day.
Bear sightings in New Jersey have surged by 69.5% compared to the same period last year, according to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. However, the total number of interactions with bears has decreased by 1.26%, and incidents of damage and nuisance have dropped by 13.24%.
Sussex County accounts for more than half of these interactions. Recent bear sightings in the area include reports from Ridgewood on Monday, Ramsey on Sunday, Prospect Park and Haledon on May 10, and Wyckoff on May 9.