Rhino kills a zookeeper and seriously injures her husband and co-worker when he tries to save her in the Austrian zoo
- A 33-year-old woman has been declared dead after being injured by a rhinoceros in her enclosure
- A 34-year-old zookeeper was also attacked when he tried to scare the animal away
Austrian media reports that a rhinoceros crushed a zookeeper to death and seriously injured her colleague as he desperately tried to save his wife.
The 33-year-old woman is said to have been trying to apply insect repellent when she was fatally injured by a 1.8-ton rhino named Yeti in Salzburg’s Hellbrunn Zoo.
The incident occurred during the animals’ morning feeding round, Sabine Grebner, director of Salzburg’s Hellbrunn Zoo, said at a press conference.
“We don’t know exactly how it happened,” Grebner said, adding that the killed zookeeper suffered chest injuries.
The animal keeper, a German from Bavaria, was very experienced and specialized in rhinos, while her male colleague was responsible for the animal feed.
The 33-year-old woman was believed to have been trying to apply insect repellent when she was fatally injured by a 1.8 tonne rhino named Yeti (pictured).
Located in the gardens of Hellbrunn Palace, Salzburg Zoo is home to 1,500 animals and attracts over 400,000 visitors annually
The zoo said it would remain closed Tuesday following the incident and that police were on scene
While trying to scare the animal away, the 34-year-old zookeeper was attacked by the same rhino and seriously injured.
He was hospitalized and his life is not in danger. The goalkeeper was pronounced dead at 7:04 a.m. (0504 GMT).
The affected rhino was a female named Yeti, Grebner confirmed, adding that all of the rhinos at the zoo have been there for a long time and are cooperative with their keepers.
The Salzburg police said in an earlier statement that an animal keeper in the rhino enclosure was attacked by the animal “for reasons that are still unknown.”
The affected rhino was a female named Yeti, Grebner confirmed, adding that all of the rhinos at the zoo have been there for a long time and are cooperative with their keepers
“The woman died from her injuries at the scene of the accident,” said a police spokesman.
The zoo said it would remain closed Tuesday.
Located in the gardens of Hellbrunn Palace, Salzburg Zoo is home to 1,500 animals and attracts over 400,000 visitors annually.