There are no more bats in the belfry -- or the auditorium, the hallway or the classrooms -- at Lehi High School anymore.

A few weeks ago the bats came back, but work from school district officials solved the problem quickly.

"We knew there was a possibility that they would come back and we were right, they came back," said Alpine School District representative Rhonda Bromley. "This time we were ready for it. We had administrators put in some late night hours to find out how (bats) were getting out and some early morning hours to find out how they got in."

They began working hand in hand with the Utah County Health Department and then decided to contract with a company that specialized in getting rid of bat infestations.

The contractors began working on the problem Monday.

The health department sent a letter to the school which was read to students letting them know it was unsafe to handle a bat.

The bats are Mexican free tail bats and are a protected species.

"We're right in their migratory path and they are looking for a hotel as they move south and we don't want to have a light out for them," said LHS Principal Chuck Bearce.

Bromley laughed at his comment because she said that was one of the things they tried to get rid of the bats, bright lights to discourage the nocturnal creatures from entering the school. The last option, killing the bats, was used after everything else was tried including blocking the small holes they were using to enter the buildings.

"They are good animals they just aren't good pets," said UCHD epidemiology coordinator Lisa Guerra. "They are very beneficial, they eat mosquitoes, they eat bugs, and so we want to keep them. We don't want to go on bat hunts."

In the Rocky Mountain area, the majority of bats carry the rabies virus, a virus with deadly consequences. A bat can spread rabies through its fur or its saliva. Its teeth are so tiny, its bite is similar to a mosquito bite.

"You may not even know that it is nibbling on you," Guerra said.

She said several schools have had bats, but none so public as Lehi High School's infestation a year ago.

"I've had a few principals come to me quietly and say, 'You know, we have had bats at our school, too,'" Guerra said.

The danger is once exposed to a bat, chances are highly likely that person has been exposed to rabies, too.

"All parents need to inform their child no matter what age that bats are a wild animal and as wild animals we need to avoid them."

More on bats and health safety can be found at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/kidsrabies/.