A woman was driving outside Quilcene when a cougar came out of the woods and collided with her car.

Fish and Wildlife Sgt. Phil Henry said there are quite a few cougars in the area, but incidents like this are almost unheard of.

The woman was driving on U.S. 101 Monday afternoon when a female cougar leaped out of the woods and directly into the path of her car.

“Before the lady driver could react, the cougar hit the side of her car and basically it was mortally wounded and crawled over into the ditch,” Henry said.

The woman was not injured and was able to drive away.

A state trooper approached the animal when another cougar came out of the woods just few feet away.

Fish and Wildlife agents eventually had to put the cougar down.

Henry said it’s likely the two cats came from the heavily wooded areas around Quilcene and stumbled into the busy highway by accident.

Officials warn drivers to be on the lookout for wild animals.