Tiger kills zookeeper at New Zealand zoo
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E-mail Shanghai Daily, September 21, 2015
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A veteran New Zealand zookeeper was attacked and killed by a Sumatran tiger yesterday inside the animal's enclosure. [File photo/Hamilton Zoo] |
A veteran New Zealand zookeeper was attacked and killed by a Sumatran tiger yesterday inside the animal's enclosure.
Police said they were called to the Hamilton Zoo at 11am after reports that 43-year-old Samantha Kudeweh had been attacked by one of the zoo's five tigers. Police said she died at the scene.
The zoo asked all visitors to leave and said it was closing its doors until Thursday. Authorities are investigating to determine exactly what happened.
Zoo visitor Adam Rich told The New Zealand Herald that he saw the tigers in the morning and noticed a female zookeeper opening up a gate to allow them access to an outdoor enclosure.
He said that about 45 minutes to an hour later, zoo staff approached him and asked him to leave. He said they were offering everyone a refund. "They seemed a bit panicky," Rich said.
Kudeweh was a senior member of the staff and had been a zookeeper for more than 20 years, according to police.
A biography on the zoo's website described her role as curator, responsible for organizing what animals the zoo obtained and how it looked after them.
"For me the best thing about my role is the opportunities to interact with other species one to one, but there is a downside and that is having to say goodbye to animals," Kudeweh wrote on the site. "That part never gets any easier."
The zoo is owned and operated by the Hamilton City Council. The tiger that attacked Kudeweh is named Oz and is the zoo's only adult male tiger.
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