Two deer entered Moulden Hall on West Campus this Sunday, causing damage to the residence hall and wreaking havoc at a student barbeque. Students alerted Public Safety of the incident.

“[We responded] to a report of a live deer roaming inside the building,” Public Safety Senior Investigator Jim Conway said.

At approximately 7:45 p.m., the animals entered the building through the door closest to Klekotka Hall. Resident Assistants held a barbeque for the residents of West Campus from 4 to 7 p.m., and students propped open the door as they moved in and out of the residence hall.

Five public safety officers, including a sergeant who served as shift supervisor, reported to the scene to find the deer on the ground floor in the hallway closest to Klekotka Hall. The officers proceeded to ensure that all of the doors to Moulden Hall were secured and that all students cleared out of the way.

The Public Safety officers then called Radnor Police, hoping that they would have animal tranquilizers, Conway said.

Radnor Police did not have any animal tranquilizers to offer Public Safety, but two Radnor police officers did report to the scene.

The officers worked together and “forced the deer out of the open lobby door,” Conway said. The deer were not injured.

Students also reported that a fire extinguisher may have been used in an attempt to clear the deer from the building.

Students reported seeing the deer run out of Moulden Hall, run between Farley and Gallen Halls and enter the woods behind the West Campus basketball courts.

While they were in Moulden Hall, the deer managed to enter a community bathroom, where they pulled down a sink.

Conway said that no water damage was reported, and no other damage to the building occurred.

Because the incident occurred shortly following the student barbeque, a large crowd of students watched the events unfold.

“I was walking out of Moulden on my way to the 8 p.m. Mass and saw a big crowd of people by the side door, so we took a detour to see what was going on,” junior Niki Beaumariage said. “I caught a quick glimpse of the two deer standing in the hallway before we were told to move away because they were going to let the deer out. We started walking away, and the two deer bolted out of the building.”

Students scattered and ran out of the way of the exiting deer.

Along with the damage, the deer made a mess on the ground floor.

“After church we were walking through the hall and saw all of the deerprints in the mess the fire extinguisher made and the huge puddle around the bathroom where the deer kicked out the sink,” Beaumariage said.

Overall, students reported that this was an extremely unusual and unexpected way to finish NovaFest weekend.

“I’m not sure what I would’ve done had I opened the door of my apartment and been greeted by two deer,” Beaumariage said.

Kyle Scudilla contributed additional reporting to the article.