Lake Norman High School Leaders Dismiss Class Early After Skunk Sprays Worker

LAKE NORMAN, N.C. — It appears a skunk disrupted class for hundreds of students at Lake Norman High School Friday morning.

School leaders dismissed class for the day after spotting a skunk running through the hallway.  Logan Paganini is one of more than 1800 students and staff who practically ran out of the building, after only spending about three hours in class.

“Around the middle of second period, there was like a smell going on throughout the school.  I was actually in the classroom right above where the skunk was, so you could just start smelling something and no one really knew what it was,” says Logan Paganini, a junior at Lake Norman High School.

School officials released a statement saying ‘Due to an unfortunate circumstance beyond our control, Lake Norman High is releasing students from school early.  There is a skunk in the building.’

A maintenance worker actually spotted the skunk and he was sprayed when he tried to capture the animal.  He will be ok, and he managed to remove the skunk from the premises.  But, the damage was already done, the stench quickly entered the ventilation system, and hallways forcing leaders to dismiss school at 10:55 a.m.

Logan spent the rest of the day enjoying the fresh fall air with his grandpa.

“I’ve smelled skunks many times.  They smell like exponentially smellier than the Mooresville dump,” says Phillip Stumphf, Logan’s grandfather.

Iredell County Animal Control was called in and walked the area to make sure no more skunks were around.

School leaders will monitor the building for any lingering offensive odor over the weekend.