(RI) Rabid raccoon chases children, killed by resident 09-05-03
Date: Sep 15, 2003 7:17 PM

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=10113467&BRD=1720&PAG=461&dept_id=74554&rfi=6

Rabid raccoon chases down school bus in western Coventry
By MATTHEW SPRING 09/05/2003

COVENTRY – It sounds like something out of the Stephen King novel Cujo,
but for several local residents, frothing evil came in the guise of a
cute and cuddly raccoon.

Coventry resident Pat Johnson said she stood at a bus stop last
Wednesday afternoon with her two grown daughters at the corner of Narrow
Lane and Perry Hill Road and waited to collect her grandchildren and
walk them back to her house a few blocks away.

Suddenly, Coventry High student John Curtis approached Johnson and her
daughters, stating a raccoon he suspected to be rabid was chasing him.
Johnson took Curtis and one of her daughters back to her house while her
other daughter, Faith Underwood, remained behind to warn the incoming
bus that a rabid raccoon drew near.

Johnson said when the bus arrived, Faith attempted to warn the driver,
but he opened up the door. She then climbed into the bus and quickly
explained the situation to the driver.

Rather than let the children get off at the bus stop, the bus backed up
to Johnson’s house. Johnson said the raccoon gave chase but the driver
let off Faith and her grandchildren and quickly sped away.

Proving too slow for the school bus, the raccoon chased the group
indoors with one daughter trapped in a car outside. Johnson said they
kept the raccoon at bay for an hour, tapping on windows to keep its
attention while waiting for Department of Environmental Management (DEM)
officers to arrive.

Though Coventry Animal Control eventually arrived on the scene, Johnson
said the woman couldn’t remedy the situation because she didn’t have a
weapon to neutralize the woodland creature.

Following this, Johnson called a neighbor who rushed over with his
shotgun and killed the raccoon as it began having convulsions in the
driveway, thus ending the standoff.

Though seemingly humorous in retrospect, Johnson wants residents to
seriously “keep a half-eye out” for other rabid wild animals after her
terrifying ordeal.

“The creature was going after whatever moved,” Johnson said. She hopes
that other residents of Coventry will exercise caution when seeing
wildlife in the area.

In light of this incident, several town officials discussed the presence
of rabid animals in Coventry with The Courier and what measures can be
taken to deal with the problem.

On Tuesday afternoon, Lieutenant Michael Longtin of the DEM said
manpower at DEM is limited and rabid animal reports are quite common.
“The number of rabid animals has been high for the last few years. We
handle numerous complaints on rabies each day.”

“This is just one of our functions,” Longtin said. “Rabid animals
do
take priority, but we don’t handle nuisances. Any sick or injured
animals we handle as soon as possible.”

Longtin said that suspected rabid animals are euthanized and turned over
to the Department of Health to test the animal for rabies. Only through
studying the brain matter of animals can conclusive results be provided.

In response to hearing about the incident, Coventry School
Superintendent Kenneth R. Di Pietro said on Wednesday morning, “The fear
is, ‘Are children in danger?’ Moving a bus stop doesn’t preclude animals
from being animals, from being interested in going to another bus stop.
I think that parents are always concerned that they don’t want children
to be too far from home to go to a bus stop but the size of Coventry
mandates that we have some expectation of children walking to a bus
stop.”

Supervisor of Coventry Animal Control Bob Cox said, “Our response is
limited as to what we can do. We’re not equipped with a weapon to do
anything.” Cox said that they are also limited in manpower, but if the
situation warrants, they can contact Coventry Police to put down rabid
animals.

According to Cox, people can reduce the potential of having rabid
animals around their house by blocking off crawlspaces underneath sheds,
securing trashcans and making sure no food is left out overnight to
attract unwanted wildlife visitors.

If you see an animal you believe to be rabid, DEM recommend contacting
either DEM Enforcement at 222-3070 or Coventry Animal Control at
822-9106. If the animal bites you, thoroughly wash the wound and seek
medical attention immediately.

For pet owners, should you suspect your cat or dog became infected with
the disease, confine the animal and immediately contact Coventry Animal
Control.