WATCH: Mountain Lion Roaming Around Vermillion, South Dakota
There is always something new when you're a police officer patrolling the streets. However, I don't think the police officers of the Vermillion Police Department ever thought they would come across a big cat early Friday morning.
Around 4:15 AM on Friday morning, officers driving on patrol came close to a crosswalk when they noticed something very large and unusual crossing the street. A mountain lion was probably the last thing Vermillion police officers thought they would see in the morning.
In a post on its Facebook page, the Vermillion Police Department did post a video of the dashcam footage that captured the running mountain lion.
An officer sighted a mountain lion while on patrol, at about 4:15 AM, crossing N. Dakota Street in about the 100 block. Please be aware, if you plan to go for a morning jog, walk, etc., in case our visitor hasn't left town yet.
There were a lot of safety concerns in regards to the mountain lion sighting. The Vermillion Police Department worked with organizations including South Dakota Game. Fish, and Parks to determine how to approach this situation.
The Vermillion Police Department told our news partners at Dakota News Now they are pretty "confident" the mountain lion is out of the area. But they want to remind everyone to stay vigilant while they are outdoors.
There have not been any additional reported sightings, so it likely continued outside of city limits by now. Game, Fish, & Parks advised us that attacks on humans are very unlikely. If you want to be extra cautious, walk in groups, however unaccompanied small children and small pets outside would be the most vulnerable.
Mountain lions are nothing new to the state of South Dakota. They mainly can be found in the Black Hills. However, they do roam across the state. So if you happen to see a mountain lion in South Dakota, give the big cat its space.
You can watch the video of the mountain lion hanging out in Vermillion by clicking here.