Photo of the lions in August this year (Photo: Getty Images)
Five lions sparked a brief panic at an Australian zoo after escaping the enclosure where they are kept.
The animals one adult and four cubs were spotted outside the cage at Sydney’s Taronga Zoo around 6:30am (23:30 GMT) on Wednesday (November 2).
The zoo was closed and one cub had to be stunned, but all the lions were captured within minutes, a spokesman said. Nobody was injured.
How they managed to escape has not yet been explained.
The zoo’s chief executive, Simon Duffy, called the incident a “significant incident” and said there would be an investigation.
He told local media that the lions entered a small area “adjacent” to their location about 100 meters from where some guests had spent the night. The regular visit to the zoo was not working at the time of the incident.
“At no time did the lions leave this area or Taronga Zoo,” added Duffy.
He added that the small area is protected by a twometre high fence, which is normally used to keep people at a safe distance. The entire zoo is also protected by fences.
Footage from surveillance cameras showed a nurse sounding the alarm about 10 minutes after the escape.
According to Duffy, the emergency response team responded quickly to move everyone at risk to a safe location. Four of the lions “quietly returned” to the enclosure.
The Lion’s Wing will remain closed pending further inspections to ensure everything is “100% safe,” added the facility’s chief executive.
Animal escapes from Australian zoos are rare.
In 2009, a lioness escaped from Mogo Zoo south of Sydney and had to be shot because of the danger she posed to the public.
This text was published at https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/internacional63484909
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