British police are urging the public to be careful after a wolf escaped from a sanctuary near a school as gale-force winds buffeted parts of the country.

Witnesses said Thursday the wolf got free after strong winds knocked down a fence at the UK Wolf Conversation Trust near Reading, 45 miles (73 kilometers) west of London.

Police have told nearby schoolchildren not to go outside and urged people not to approach the animal.

Police are working with the sanctuary to try to recapture the wolf, one of 10 living at the sanctuary.