Mountain Lion Confronts Redwood City Couple In Their Driveway
REDWOOD CITY (KPIX 5) -- A Redwood City couple's home surveillance camera caught a mountain lion--which they estimated to be the size of a bicycle--leap over their fence and into their backyard after discovering it in their driveway Thursday night.
"Hit my brakes and I'm about a quarter way into my driveway, and this thing's just staring at me," said Anthony Lahlouh.
Anthony and his wife Lizzy had arrived at their Emerald Lake Hills home just before 10 p.m. when Anthony spotted the cougar in the driveway. He said his shock quickly turned into fear for Lizzy, who was driving separately behind him.
"I immediately picked up my phone," he said. "I was like, 'Do not move, don't get out of your car,' because she had our dog in the car too."
Lizzy said she initially thought their home was on fire or someone had broken into it.
"He said very kind of panicked and serious. 'Where are you, there's a mountain lion in our driveway, don't get out of the car,'" recounted Lizzy.
Anthony said he and the mountain lion locked eyes for about three seconds before he flashed his lights, honked his horn and yelled out of his window. That was enough for the cat to take off. But it then ran toward the couple's backyard where their surveillance camera caught it hopping their fence.
The Lahlouhs stayed in their car for 20 minutes, they said, calling several agencies to see if they could get any help, including the sheriff's office. They finally mustered enough courage to get out of their cars and made a beeline for their door along with their dog, Bane.
"We kind of huddled up and ran into the house kind of hugging the walls," said Anthony.
They said they've lived in the home for five years and see wildlife all the time. While they're not surprised that there was a mountain lion in their neighborhood, they said they are still shocked they nearly came face-to-face with it.
They said they don't want to take the risk of another confrontation and have stopped letting their dog hang out in the backyard, just to be safe.
"We're definitely keeping a weary eye at night and in the mornings to make sure that we're not going to get surprised," Anthony said.
"I think having the video footage makes it a little bit more real," Lizzy said.
