Zoo Criticized for Killing Escaped Lion

'This is a nightmare for every zoo director'
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jun 22, 2018 12:27 AM CDT
Lion Killed After Escape in Belgian Zoo
There has been no word from authorities on how the lioness escaped.   (AP Photo/POLFOTO, Jens Dresling)

A lion on the loose forced the evacuation of one of Belgium's most famous zoos Thursday, and the animal was killed after several failed attempts to sedate it. Planckendael zoo was evacuated for several hours in peak school-trip season as security tried to get the female lion back in its enclosure. When it got close to an area with visitors, the decision was made to shoot it, the AP reports. "It became too dangerous and after the advice we got from the police, the crisis team decided to eliminate the animal," says zoo director Dries Herpoelaert. Until then, no visitor or staff member had been in danger.

The lion got out just after opening time so few people were at the zoo, some 19 miles north of Brussels. "This is terrible and inexplicable," says regional animal welfare minister Ben Weyts. "I do not understand why not more attempts were made to sedate the lioness." Weyts called for an investigation into both the escape of the animal and the decision to kill it. Herpoelaert says it was a gut-wrenching decision: "This is a nightmare for every zoo director. A dangerous animal escapes" with the risk of people getting harmed. "We love those animals, it's a tragedy," he says. In the end, he says there was no choice. "For three hours we tried to get the animal back into its enclosure" before several attempts to sedate it also failed, Herpoelaert says. (Earlier this year, a lion killed a zookeeper in Mexico.)

(More escaped animal stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X