Tiger Kills 1, Critically Injures 2 on Christmas Day at SF Zoo
A Christmas outing turned deadly for three friends visiting the San Francisco Zoo, as a Siberian tiger named Tatiana escaped her enclosure and attacked them, killing one.
By Anastacia Mott Austin
Terror reigned briefly at the San Francisco Zoo on Christmas Day in the minutes after closing time, as one of the five tigers kept at the zoo escaped her enclosure and attacked three young men, killing one of them.
News of the attack spread across the zoo, and employees and visitors were ordered to take shelter at the gift shops. As dark descended, officials from the zoo and law enforcement tried to ascertain whether it was a solitary attack or if other animals had escaped. Helicopters flew overhead with thermal imaging cameras, looking for additional animals or victims.
But additional searches didn’t turn up any new victims. "We’re pretty confident we did a very successful search…" said San Francisco police sergeant Neville Gittens the next day. "And nobody called in to report anybody missing."
A quick search of the tiger enclosure confirmed that the other four tigers in the area were securely within the fence.
The incident occurred just after closing time, when there were still some 25 zoo visitors milling around. Reports cannot confirm exactly how the four-year-old, 350-pound female Siberian tiger, named Tatiana, managed to escape the enclosure, which was surrounded by a 15-foot wide moat and a 20-foot high wall.
Witnesses say that the tiger immediately attacked the group of three friends, whose names have not been released to the public, killing one of them. Four police officers responding to frantic 911 calls arrived to find the body of the first victim, Carlos Sousa, Jr., 17, and then saw the tiger sitting beside another victim, at a zoo café about 300 feet away from the tiger enclosure. When the officers approached, the tiger resumed her attack of the victim, and all four officers fired their weapons, killing the tiger.
All three victims were immediately taken to San Francisco General hospital, where Sousa was pronounced dead, and the other two underwent immediate surgery for deep bite wounds on their heads and upper bodies.
Though in critical condition, the two apparently weathered their surgeries well, and have been labeled as stable.
Dr. John Brown, a representative from SF General, told reporters from TV’s "Good Morning America" that the two young men were doing as well as could be expected.
"They’re doing well at the present time. They have both gone through their surgeries well. These injuries are severe injuries, but they are very treatable. These two gentlemen seem to be in good health. So I think they have a good chance."
The primary concern at this time for them is possible infection from the bite wounds.
The zoo remained closed the day after the attacks, and counselors were available for zoo employees.
The San Francisco zoo came under fire almost exactly a year ago, in a case involving the same tiger, Tatiana. A zoo employee named Lori Komejan lost part of her arm during a public feeding demonstration on December 22nd, 2006, when she reached into the tiger’s side of the enclosure to retrieve something, and Tatiana grabbed her arm. Another employee was able to help free Komejan, but she suffered serious injuries to the arm.
The public feedings were halted for nearly nine months as an investigation was conducted. The zoo was found to be at fault in the incident for constructing the enclosure in such a way that allowed the attack to happen. Zoo officials report that over $250,000 in safety measures were put in place and the public feedings resumed in September of this year.
The zoo’s closure is the first time the San Francisco zoo, which is normally open 365 days a year, has been closed in several years. Zoo officials will hold a staff meeting this week to further investigate the case and determine if human action caused Tatiana to escape the enclosure. "We don’t know at this point if somebody let the tiger out or it climbed out," said police sergeant Gittens, adding to reporters that a criminal investigation would begin if that were the case.
A representative for the zoo, Lora LaMarca, told reporters, "The zoo offers its sincerest sympathies to the people affected."
Terror reigned briefly at the San Francisco Zoo on Christmas Day in the minutes after closing time, as one of the five tigers kept at the zoo escaped her enclosure and attacked three young men, killing one of them.
News of the attack spread across the zoo, and employees and visitors were ordered to take shelter at the gift shops. As dark descended, officials from the zoo and law enforcement tried to ascertain whether it was a solitary attack or if other animals had escaped. Helicopters flew overhead with thermal imaging cameras, looking for additional animals or victims.
But additional searches didn’t turn up any new victims. "We’re pretty confident we did a very successful search…" said San Francisco police sergeant Neville Gittens the next day. "And nobody called in to report anybody missing."
A quick search of the tiger enclosure confirmed that the other four tigers in the area were securely within the fence.
The incident occurred just after closing time, when there were still some 25 zoo visitors milling around. Reports cannot confirm exactly how the four-year-old, 350-pound female Siberian tiger, named Tatiana, managed to escape the enclosure, which was surrounded by a 15-foot wide moat and a 20-foot high wall.
Witnesses say that the tiger immediately attacked the group of three friends, whose names have not been released to the public, killing one of them. Four police officers responding to frantic 911 calls arrived to find the body of the first victim, Carlos Sousa, Jr., 17, and then saw the tiger sitting beside another victim, at a zoo café about 300 feet away from the tiger enclosure. When the officers approached, the tiger resumed her attack of the victim, and all four officers fired their weapons, killing the tiger.
All three victims were immediately taken to San Francisco General hospital, where Sousa was pronounced dead, and the other two underwent immediate surgery for deep bite wounds on their heads and upper bodies.
Though in critical condition, the two apparently weathered their surgeries well, and have been labeled as stable.
Dr. John Brown, a representative from SF General, told reporters from TV’s "Good Morning America" that the two young men were doing as well as could be expected.
"They’re doing well at the present time. They have both gone through their surgeries well. These injuries are severe injuries, but they are very treatable. These two gentlemen seem to be in good health. So I think they have a good chance."
The primary concern at this time for them is possible infection from the bite wounds.
The zoo remained closed the day after the attacks, and counselors were available for zoo employees.
The San Francisco zoo came under fire almost exactly a year ago, in a case involving the same tiger, Tatiana. A zoo employee named Lori Komejan lost part of her arm during a public feeding demonstration on December 22nd, 2006, when she reached into the tiger’s side of the enclosure to retrieve something, and Tatiana grabbed her arm. Another employee was able to help free Komejan, but she suffered serious injuries to the arm.
The public feedings were halted for nearly nine months as an investigation was conducted. The zoo was found to be at fault in the incident for constructing the enclosure in such a way that allowed the attack to happen. Zoo officials report that over $250,000 in safety measures were put in place and the public feedings resumed in September of this year.
The zoo’s closure is the first time the San Francisco zoo, which is normally open 365 days a year, has been closed in several years. Zoo officials will hold a staff meeting this week to further investigate the case and determine if human action caused Tatiana to escape the enclosure. "We don’t know at this point if somebody let the tiger out or it climbed out," said police sergeant Gittens, adding to reporters that a criminal investigation would begin if that were the case.
A representative for the zoo, Lora LaMarca, told reporters, "The zoo offers its sincerest sympathies to the people affected."
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