A 55-year old zoo keeper has been killed by a tiger at Zoo Zurich.
This content was published on
1 minute
Keystone-SDA/ac
The incident took place before 1.20 pm on Saturday, a member of the Zurich city police’s operations centre told the news agency Keystone-SDA. The keeper was attacked by an Amur tigress called Irina. The animal was eventually lured away by a group of keepers to a holding pen. Despite rapid medical assistance, the 55-year-old woman died.
According to Swiss media reports, several police officers were present at the zoo. The area around the tiger enclosure was cordoned off. The zoo hosts two adult Amur tigers: a five-year-old female called Irina and a four-and-a-half-year-old male called Sayan. Zoo Zurich has been open since June 6 after the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.
It is not exactly clear how the tragedy occurred and why the animal keeper was in the enclosure at the same time as the tiger. The incident is now being investigated by the Zurich public prosecutor’s office, the Zurich city police, the Zurich Forensic Institute and the Institute for Forensic Medicine.
A counselling team was set up for the visitors and zoo employees who witnessed the incident.
This is not the first animal attack reported in Zoo Zurich. In December 2019, a male Philippine crocodile grabbed a zookeeper’s arm during a routine enclosure cleaning operation. The keeper was injured and had to go undergo surgery while the reptile was shot.
Swiss football boss wants crackdown on individual hooligans
This content was published on
The head of the Swiss Football League says he prefers a harsher approach to individual hooligans rather than collective punishment measures affecting all fans.
Amherd: Council of Europe is ‘as urgently needed as ever’
This content was published on
The Swiss government emphasised on Sunday the vital role of the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe, 75 years after it was founded.
Swiss minister: Italy will back Switzerland in EU talks
This content was published on
Bern can count on the backing of Italy as it re-enters talks with the European Union on future relations, Viola Amherd says.
Student protestors at University of Lausanne continue pro-Palestine sit-in
This content was published on
Since Thursday, a hall on campus has been occupied by students calling for a boycott of Israeli academic institutions and a ceasefire in Gaza.
This content was published on
Swiss public broadcasters RTS and SRF are drastically reducing their communications via the social network X (formerly Twitter).
Israel: president of Swiss universities rejects academic boycott
This content was published on
Luciana Vaccaro, president of Swissuniversities, the umbrella group of Swiss universities, is not in favour of an academic boycott of Israeli universities.
Europe offers last line of defence for the Asiatic lion
This content was published on
The endangered Asiatic lion is threatened by a contagious virus in India. In a worst-case scenario can captive animals in Europe help?
This content was published on
Markus Schietsch clearly remembers his first encounter with a wild bull elephant. He was in the back of an open pickup truck when the elephant repeatedly mock charged the vehicle in the Kaeng Krachan national park in Thailand. The adrenalin-packed experience was courtesy of a study trip organised by the Zurich zoo, as the Zurich…
This content was published on
Basel and Zurich zoos recently launched major new development projects. Although they claim to be more animal-friendly ...
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.