4 tigers loose in san francisco
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One San Francisco Zoo visitor was killed and two others injured early this evening after a tiger escaped from its cage.
The tiger that got loose was fatally shot while it was attacking a patron, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith.
The attack happened shortly after the zoo's 5 p.m. closing time at a cafe on the east end of the zoo, officials said. The tiger cages are located near the center of the zoo.
The condition of the two injured patrons was not immediately known. It was also not clear how the tiger escaped.
Officials at first worried that four tigers had escaped, but three of the tigers never left their pen, Smith said.
The killing happened almost exactly a year after a zookeeper was mauled during a public feeding. The state has ruled that the zoo was responsible for that incident because of the unsafe configuration of the cages.
This evening, shortly after the 5:17 p.m. report of the attack, shotgun-wielding police officers and firefighters gathered around the zoo's south entrance.
Firefighters were using tall ladders to shine flashlights into the zoo through the dense eucalyptus trees.
fuuuckin crazy
The tiger that got loose was fatally shot while it was attacking a patron, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith.
The attack happened shortly after the zoo's 5 p.m. closing time at a cafe on the east end of the zoo, officials said. The tiger cages are located near the center of the zoo.
The condition of the two injured patrons was not immediately known. It was also not clear how the tiger escaped.
Officials at first worried that four tigers had escaped, but three of the tigers never left their pen, Smith said.
The killing happened almost exactly a year after a zookeeper was mauled during a public feeding. The state has ruled that the zoo was responsible for that incident because of the unsafe configuration of the cages.
This evening, shortly after the 5:17 p.m. report of the attack, shotgun-wielding police officers and firefighters gathered around the zoo's south entrance.
Firefighters were using tall ladders to shine flashlights into the zoo through the dense eucalyptus trees.
fuuuckin crazy
SF Zoo tiger escapes and mauls visitor to death
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article/article?f=/c/a/2007/12/25/BA0LU4M2T.DTL
(12-25) 21:12 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- One zoo visitor was killed and two injured early this evening in an attack by a Siberian tiger that somehow managed to escape from her enclosed grotto. The horrific mauling witnessed by other zoo patrons came nearly a year to the day after the same tiger almost chewed the arm off one of her zookeepers during a public feeding demonstration.
The zoo will be closed Wednesday out of respect for the unnamed victims, described by authorities as men in their 20s. One of the men was killed outside the grotto where the tigers are kept; the other two men were attacked about 300 yards away at a cafe. The incident happened about 20 minutes after the zoo's 5 p.m. closing time.
The tiger, named Tatiana, was killed by four police officers who tracked it to a cafe and found it atop one of the victims. A police spokesman said the officers distracted the animal, which turned and approached the officers who opened fire with .40-caliber handguns.
Investigators today plan to comb the San Francisco Zoo to piece together how Tatiana escaped from her grotto, which is surrounded by a 15-foot-wide moat and 20-foot-tall wall, said Bob Jenkins, the zoo's director of animal care and conservation.
Officials refused to rule out carelessness or criminal activity.
On Dec. 22, 2006, the 350-pound Tatiana chewed the flesh off Lori Komejan's arm during a public feeding demonstration. A state investigation later ruled that the zoo was at fault for the attack because of the way the cages were configured.
The two survivors were in critical to stable condition at San Francisco General Hospital, said police department spokesman Sgt. Steve Mannina.
They suffered "pretty aggressive bite marks," he said.
Investigators planned to canvass the 1,000-acre zoo Wednesday morning to make sure there were no other victims, Smith said.
Despite early worries, three other tigers never escaped into the public areas, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith.
Shortly after the attack was reported, shotgun-wielding police officers gathered outside the zoo's south entrance and firefighters used tall ladders and flashlights to peer into the zoo's crop of eucalyptus trees.
The zoo has two different tiger species in captivity, Siberian and Sumatran, according to the zoo's Web site. The site also says that more humans die each year in tiger attacks than attacks by any other animal, although such incidents are rare because tigers normally avoid people.
It is not normal for animals to be euthanized after such incidents, officials said at the time.
A June report from the state Division of Occupation Safety and Health blamed the San Francisco Zoo for the attack, stating that the tiger cages were configured in a way that made it possible for Tatiana to bite onto the zookeeper's arm. The state found that Komejan was attacked after she reached through a drain trough to retrieve an item near the tiger's side of the cage. The tiger reached under the cage bars and grabbed her right arm, but the zookeeper tried to push the tiger away using her other arm, the report found.
Both of her arms were under the cage at that point and her face was pressed against the cage bars, according to the report. Another employee grabbed a long-handled squeegee and hit the tiger in the head until it released the injured zookeeper.
The public feedings at the Lion House resumed in September after about $250,000 in safety upgrades.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article/article?f=/c/a/2007/12/25/BA0LU4M2T.DTL
(12-25) 21:12 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- One zoo visitor was killed and two injured early this evening in an attack by a Siberian tiger that somehow managed to escape from her enclosed grotto. The horrific mauling witnessed by other zoo patrons came nearly a year to the day after the same tiger almost chewed the arm off one of her zookeepers during a public feeding demonstration.
The zoo will be closed Wednesday out of respect for the unnamed victims, described by authorities as men in their 20s. One of the men was killed outside the grotto where the tigers are kept; the other two men were attacked about 300 yards away at a cafe. The incident happened about 20 minutes after the zoo's 5 p.m. closing time.
The tiger, named Tatiana, was killed by four police officers who tracked it to a cafe and found it atop one of the victims. A police spokesman said the officers distracted the animal, which turned and approached the officers who opened fire with .40-caliber handguns.
Investigators today plan to comb the San Francisco Zoo to piece together how Tatiana escaped from her grotto, which is surrounded by a 15-foot-wide moat and 20-foot-tall wall, said Bob Jenkins, the zoo's director of animal care and conservation.
Officials refused to rule out carelessness or criminal activity.
On Dec. 22, 2006, the 350-pound Tatiana chewed the flesh off Lori Komejan's arm during a public feeding demonstration. A state investigation later ruled that the zoo was at fault for the attack because of the way the cages were configured.
The two survivors were in critical to stable condition at San Francisco General Hospital, said police department spokesman Sgt. Steve Mannina.
They suffered "pretty aggressive bite marks," he said.
Investigators planned to canvass the 1,000-acre zoo Wednesday morning to make sure there were no other victims, Smith said.
Despite early worries, three other tigers never escaped into the public areas, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith.
Shortly after the attack was reported, shotgun-wielding police officers gathered outside the zoo's south entrance and firefighters used tall ladders and flashlights to peer into the zoo's crop of eucalyptus trees.
The zoo has two different tiger species in captivity, Siberian and Sumatran, according to the zoo's Web site. The site also says that more humans die each year in tiger attacks than attacks by any other animal, although such incidents are rare because tigers normally avoid people.
It is not normal for animals to be euthanized after such incidents, officials said at the time.
A June report from the state Division of Occupation Safety and Health blamed the San Francisco Zoo for the attack, stating that the tiger cages were configured in a way that made it possible for Tatiana to bite onto the zookeeper's arm. The state found that Komejan was attacked after she reached through a drain trough to retrieve an item near the tiger's side of the cage. The tiger reached under the cage bars and grabbed her right arm, but the zookeeper tried to push the tiger away using her other arm, the report found.
Both of her arms were under the cage at that point and her face was pressed against the cage bars, according to the report. Another employee grabbed a long-handled squeegee and hit the tiger in the head until it released the injured zookeeper.
The public feedings at the Lion House resumed in September after about $250,000 in safety upgrades.
