A woman heroically attempted to stop a man from jumping into a tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park near Doncaster, but she was not strong enough to hold him back. The man, who has not been identified, was pronounced dead after entering the enclosure shortly after 1.30pm on Saturday.
Witness describes the incident
A witness said the woman tried to hold on to the man, but he "pulled away from her, climbed down, and jumped about 12ft" into the pen. The witness, speaking to The Mirror, described how the tiger initially circled the man without attacking, but then the situation escalated. "But then the young man started yelling at the tiger and waving his finger at him, yelling, 'No', and the tiger grabbed him by the neck," the witness said. "It all happened very fast. The tiger staff were in there quickly, and fired two shots to the ground to scare the tiger away from the man."
Enclosure details and tiger's fate
The enclosure, known as the "Land of Tigers", is a two-acre reserve that opened in 2011 and is surrounded by a five-metre-high fence. The man is believed to have scaled a metre-high "stand-off" fence at a viewing platform to gain access. The tiger involved, named Altai, is part of the endangered Amur subspecies, with around 500 left in the wild. The wildlife park has confirmed that the animal will not be euthanised following the incident.
Park staff react
Charlotte Pywell, an animal ranger at the zoo, expressed the distress felt by the keepers. "I was not there. I don't know who the guy was or what made him jump," she said. "It was not the tigers fault at all. It was just something else to play with. The keepers are all distraught. It was not a very nice day." The park was evacuated and closed following the emergency incident.
Police statement
In a statement released on Saturday, a police spokesperson said: "At 1.35pm, we received reports of a man entering a tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park. The tiger subsequently attacked the man, resulting in serious injury. Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene. The man's family is aware and is being supported by specialist officers. Our thoughts are with them at this distressing time. Regarding rumours surrounding the condition of the tiger, the animal was uninjured and remained in the enclosure following the incident and there is no wider risk to the public."
