ORLANDO, Fla. – A Florida high school teacher who left a disabled student behind during a fire drill resigned recently in lieu of termination, but told school officials she had no choice in a letter added to her file.

Colleen Wasylik Shytle, a first year science teacher at Orlando’s Lake Nona High School, recently penned a seven page letter to school officials explaining why she left a disabled student behind in her classroom during a fire drill in early October, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

Shytle wrote that an escort was supposed to accompany the student when the fire bell rang, but nobody ever showed up, so she opted to leave the student behind and meet up with her other students who had already evacuated the building, according to the news site.

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“I was left in a situation where regardless of what I did, I would be leaving students without supervision,” she wrote in a letter added to her file with Orange County Public Schools.

News 13 reported in October that the Department of Children and Families launched an investigation into the incident following a call to the department’s hotline. The school’s principal, Margaret Nampon sent parents a message about the investigation the day after the incident.

“The teacher resigned after an investigation began as to whether the teacher may have neglected her duties during a fire drill held at our school yesterday,” Nampon said in a recorded message to parents.

A DCF spokesperson said the teacher was investigated for “inadequate supervision,” which is considered child neglect in Florida, according to WKMG 6.

“The spokesperson said the child’s disabilities required ‘close supervision and help,’ and it appears there was no way for the student to leave the classroom on his own,” WKMG reports.

Witnesses allege they tried to help the student, who has trouble walking, but the teacher wouldn’t allow it, according to the Sentinel.

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“A kid told me to go and the teacher to stay,” a student wrote.

“Shortly after the class returned, the student began crying and saying that his ears hurt from the alarm.” Shytle’s letter of reasoning for her resignation also addressed other allegations of misconduct, “including allegations that she pulled a student by the ear and demeaned students in class,” according to the news site.

Parents who learned of the fire drill episode were quite disturbed by the teacher’s actions.

“It’s very careless,” one parent told WKMG. “I’m fortunate it’s not my daughter, but that’s very careless.”

Sheri Little, whose child has autism, was also concerned.

“My daughter is a sophomore. She’s been coming here, and she also went to Lake Nona Middle School, and she’s never had a problem,” Little said. “To hear that is really sad.”