Zoo Break Out

On Christmas Day, three young men went to the San Francisco Zoo at 5 p.m., the hour the zoo was closing. The men were gathered around the tiger grotto and were all alone. Tatiana, a 350 pound striped Siberian tiger, escaped its compound and killed a visitor. The police found the body of Carlos Sousa Jr., age 17, at the railing of the grotto. The wall between visitors and predator is 12 and ½ feet high, which is 4 feet shorter than recommended by the group that accredits the nation’s zoos. Official answers await a police investigation. Those proceeding may be guided by a record that includes charges of negligence by the zoo, because a year ago Tatiana mauled the arm of zookeeper Lori Komejan. The three had traveled from San Jose, an hour’s drive south. The other two young men with Sousa were brothers Kulbir, age 23, and Paul, age 19, Dhaliwal. Both brothers were arrested on public drunkenness charges in September, and Paul was also charged with misdemeanor resisting arrest, according to published reports. No proof has been offered by police or zoo officials that the three did taunt Tatiana. When Tatiana escaped her enclosure, she attacked Kulbir first then left him and attacked Sousa, tearing open his throat. The brothers fled, leaving a trail of blood about 300 yards to the outdoor cafe where the disbelieving worker dialed 911. The tiger was found a dozen minutes later, she had one of the brothers at her feet at the edge of the café when an unmarked police car arrived.

In 1985, Anthony Stopani received up to $20 million in an out of court settlement. In 1982, when he was 5 years old, he was mauled by a tiger that escaped from its cage at Lion Country Safari. He was attacked by a 500 pound Siberian tiger that dragged the screaming child into bushes in the park south of Irvine. The settlement will cover medical expenses, and compensate the child and his family for emotional distress. The child’s head and one leg are severely scarred and he suffers mild paralysis on the left side of his body.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/26/AR2007122601387.html