Tiger Kills Zoo Visitor

[Sapphire]

OMG, how awful! I've been to the SF Zoo and watched the big cats eat, only it wasn't humans they were dining on.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/25/tiger.attack/index.html

[mrsmaalox]

OMG, how awful! I've been to the SF Zoo and watched the big cats eat, only it wasn't humans they were dining on.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/25/tiger.attack/index.html

Yea I just saw that! I heard 4 tigers escaped! That's like a movie.

[Sapphire]

The article says they thought 4 escaped, but it turns out it was just one. He attacked and killed one person, then 2 others were also attacked and taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. So there may well be 3 dead before the night is over. :depressed

[duncan228]

Yea I just saw that! I heard 4 tigers escaped! That's like a movie.

There were 4 tigers in the cage, they thought that the other 3 may have escaped but it was just the one.

One person, and the tiger, dead.
Two other people in the hospital with life threatening injuries.

What a horrible thing, and on Christmas...

[E20]

Their fault for tormenting defenseless animals in captivity.

[Sapphire]

The killed and injured were sitting in the cafe. :wtf They were not tormenting the animals.

[Cry Havoc]

It's inhumane to cage animals and expect them to behave like people.

They didn't deserve this, but it's not totally unexpected.

[Phil Hellmuth]

Their fault for tormenting defenseless animals in captivity.

oh please.....

people are quick here to jump to the opposite side of an issue and totally defend it like a defense attorney.

zoo's are fine

[nsrammstein]

Totally fucking absurd, before people enter the zoo they have to sing some fucking shit stating that if a Tiger mauls them the zoo is not responsible and the animal will not be killed. The siberian tiger they killed is in a critically endengered list.

[nsrammstein]

This is the shit they get for keeping defenseless animals in captivity, they too get fed up of little kids throwing rocks at them and all the screaming

[nsrammstein]

The tiger dosen't deserve this shit!!

[marini martini]

No shit, I'm with you!!

[TDMVPDPOY]

looks like those 2 with critical injuries are

1> im rich biatch

2> im rich biatches

[LuvBones]

Poor tiger. :( They could've shot her with a tranquilizer.. they didn't have to kill her for being a tiger.

[Sapphire]

Poor tiger. :( They could've shot her with a tranquilizer.. they didn't have to kill her for being a tiger.

That's what I was thinking.

[Sapphire]

looks like those 2 with critical injuries are

1> im rich biatch

2> im rich biatches

:wtf So rich people deserve to get mauled by tigers? You make me laugh!

[Marklar MM]

:wtf So rich people deserve to get mauled by tigers? You make me laugh!

No Sapphire. They were saying that the first person will be a rich, and the 2nd will be rich as well.

[peewee's lovechild]

Tigers gotta eat!!!

[Dex]

*sits back and watches the Moral War break out*

[Sapphire]

No Sapphire. They were saying that the first person will be a rich, and the 2nd will be rich as well.

Oh, I needed coffee when I read that. :sleep

:lol

[thispego]

so who's the dumbfuck that left the tiger cage door ajar?

[ggoose25]

The killed and injured were sitting in the cafe. :wtf They were not tormenting the animals.

They shouldn't have been standing there.

[Dex]

It was just eating people it was supposed to eat.

[duncan228]

I don't know about the tranquilizer gun.
Was anyone close enough with one?
How long does it take for the drug to work?
How much damage can the animal still do while waiting for the drug to take effect?
Would getting shot with a dart have flared the animal up more before the drug could take effect?

I heard that this same tiger mauled a zookeeper last year, it chewed her arm nearly off below the elbow.

Think about it.
If that's your brother/son/husband in that tiger's mouth do you want to wait to see if a tranquilizer dart will do it?
I don't. Shoot to kill. As sad as it is, the animal was mauling people, killing people.
The animal has to be stopped. As fast and accuratley as it can be. There's no time to make another decision in those seconds that can, and did, save 2 people's lives.

[MrChug]

It was just eating people it was supposed to eat.

I was waiting for it...:lmao

[MannyIsGod]

The tiger went tiger.

[Extra Stout]

It's kind of silly to blame the tiger... that's what tigers do.

The blame goes to the management of a zoo that could ever preside over big carnivorous cats being unleashed upon patrons. If they cant do better than that, then their animals should be transferred to other zoos, and the SF Zoo should be closed permanently.

Of course, since it was in SF, perusing the comments behind the online article in the local paper is hilarious. Opinions include:

1) All zoos everywhere should be closed.

2) The police who shot the tiger should go to prison.

3) The killing of an endangered tiger is a far bigger tragedy than the loss of 100 human lives, much less one.

4) The vast majority of humanity should be exterminated in order to protect animal habitats.

[nsrammstein]

4) The vast majority of humanity should be exterminated in order to protect animal habitats.

The vast majority of humanity should be fucking educated on how to not piss off tigers

[ShoogarBear]

The tiger went tiger.Manny finally comes through for the win.

[tlongII]

What are you people PETA members or something???

The tiger threatened the cops. That is why it was shot. Everybody knows that if you are black or if you are a tiger and you threaten the cops you get shot. Duh!

[BonnerDynasty]

Damn white man trying to keep the Tiger down...and in a cage.

[ShoogarBear]

What are you people PETA members or something???

The tiger threatened the cops. That is why it was shot. Everybody knows that if you are black or if you are a tiger and you threaten the cops you get shot. Duh!Right On!

http://rapidcityjournal.com/blogs/sports/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/tiger-woods.jpg

[Vinnie_Johnson]

Sorry i have the tigers back here that's what you get when you let them out.

[peewee's lovechild]

The tiger went tiger.

:lol :lol :lol

[nsrammstein]

The cops should have tasered the tiger, instead of shooting it.

[Vinnie_Johnson]

:lol :lol :lol

No Shit it went Tiger :toast

[Kermit]

Tiger got taunted. If true, dude was asking for it.

SAN FRANCISCO, California (CNN) -- The father of a teen who was killed by a tiger at the San Francisco Zoo questioned the facility's safety on Thursday, as police reportedly considered whether one of the victims taunted the deadly jungle cat.


The killed teen's father, Carlos Sousa, told CNN on Thursday that the zoo should do more to protect visitors.

Sources close to the investigation told the San Francisco Chronicle that police are probing whether one of the Siberian tiger's three victims climbed over a fence Christmas Day and then dangled a leg or other body part over the moat.

Police said Carlos Sousa, 17, of San Jose was killed just outside the tiger's enclosure. The two others, who were injured, were about 300 yards away by a cafe.

A shoe and blood were found between the fence and the moat, the Chronicle reported, and a footprint has been found on a metal fence at the zoo. The investigation is looking into the possibility that the tiger escaped by latching on to a leg or other body part, the paper reported.

"Somebody created a situation that really agitated [the tiger] and and gave her some method to break her out," zoo director Manuel Mollinedo told the Chronicle. "A couple of feet dangling over the edge could possibly have done it."

But a police sergeant told the paper there was no reason to think the victims were taunting the tiger.

The two survivors were in stable condition Wednesday and doing well, San Francisco General Hospital said.


"We have deemed the site, as of last night, a crime scene," said San Francisco Police Chief Heather Fong on Wednesday, and police are working to gather evidence and witness statements.

Mollinedo said officials have not determined how the 300-pound tiger named Tatiana, escaped from her exhibit area and attacked three patrons Tuesday before police shot and killed her.

Sousa's mother Marilza Sousa told CNN on Thursday that Christmas would never be the same for them. "This is supposed to be the day for giving, not to take. And he was taken away from me," she said holding back tears.

The boy's father, also named Carlos, criticized the zoo's safety. "They didn't do enough for the public, because I think the zoo should be protective on both sides, protective for the people and protective for the animals," said the elder Carlos Sousa. Read about other escapes and attacks by captive animals

The head of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums said this was the first-ever visitor fatality due to an animal escape at a zoo accredited by the association.

Ron Magill of Florida's Miami Metrozoo told CNN that the Siberian tiger is "the most powerful cat on the face of this planet."

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Mollinedo was asked about an incident last year, in which Tatiana chewed flesh off a keeper's arm during a public feeding demonstration. Mollinedo said that Tatiana "was acting like a normal tiger" at the time, and that the zoo modified procedures to increase safety.

California's Division of Occupation Safety and Health determined the zoo was at fault because of hazardous conditions in the Lion House and lack of specialized safety training for employees. The zoo made changes that the state safety division ordered. The Lion House, the zoo's big-cat exhibit, was closed for more than six months after that incident.

Sousa's sister Beatrice appeared told CNN Wednesday night that the family has not received information about the investigation. "There's a lot of pain. You know, no words for it. It's just too much," she said. "Our family is very, very hurt." Watch the family's reaction to the attack »

The zoo was closed Wednesday while officials investigated the tiger attack. Mollinedo said the zoo will probably reopen Thursday, but the Lion House will remain closed "until we get a better understanding of what actually happened."

Tatiana was held in an exhibit area that included a 20-foot moat and an 18-foot wall, Mollinedo said. The 4-year-old tiger was born at the Denver Zoo and came to San Francisco in 2005.

Experts from other zoos will inspect the setup to help suggest modifications to assure safety, he said.

Fong said fire and police responded to emergency calls shortly after 5 p.m. Tuesday. When police arrived, they saw the tiger "sitting next to a person on the ground," and the tiger turned back and began attacking the person again, she said.

Officers yelled at the tiger to stop :lol , and did not fire immediately "for fear that they would not be able to contain their fire," she said. "When the yelling was occurring, the animal turned toward the officers," who then shot and killed the animal, Fong said.

Authorities carried out multiple searches to ensure there were no other victims, she said.

The zoo had closed at 5 p.m., and only around 20 people were still there, Mollinedo said.

The other victims of the tiger attack have not been publicly identified.

Dr. Rochelle Dicker, a surgeon at San Francisco General Hospital, said the two "young men" injured are "in very stable condition." In fact, she said, "they look absolutely fantastic."

Doctors are focusing on ensuring that the patients don't develop infections, she said, adding that they "will be on antibiotics for some time.

"By the time they got here, they were very, very stable -- not close to death," Dicker told reporters. "Really, it was just a matter of washing out their wounds."

Jim Maddy, president of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, issued a statement expressing "sympathy to the family of the guest that lost his life, and our deepest hope that the two injured guests will recover."

Maddy called the San Francisco Zoo "great," and noted that it is accredited by the association. "Until this incident, there had not been a visitor fatality resulting from an animal escape at an AZA-accredited zoo.

"AZA mandatory accreditation standards require safety and emergency protocols that go beyond federal, state or local requirements. Regular safety training and annual emergency drills are required by these mandatory accreditation standards."


He said association rules "require that the San Francisco Zoo provide a thorough report to its independent accreditation commission, which will review it and determine any actions that need to be taken. We will not speculate on what action might be taken until the facts are fully reviewed."

Along with Siberian tigers, an endangered species, the zoo has rarer and smaller Sumatran tigers.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/27/tiger.attack/index.html

[some_user86]

If the kid was taunting the tiger (which is believable and most likely given the shoe behind the fence), then he got what he deserved. If this was not the case, it's sad for the family for their loss.

I feel most sympathy and sadness for the two people who were at the cafe. Poor guys had nothing to do with this.

Gotta feel for the tiger, too, especially if the kid was taunting her.

[some_user86]

Some pictures of the family members and the kid involved.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2007/12/27/2007-12-27_mother_of_mauled_carlos_sousa_enraged_th.html

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

I really would have loved to see the disciplinary hearings should an officer fail to identify themselves to a tiger before opening fire.

[Kermit]

I really would have loved to see the disciplinary hearings should an officer fail to identify themselves to a tiger before opening fire.

Disciplined for not using his taser first.

[Slomo]

Disciplined for not using his taser first.Yeah, it's not like the tiger wasn't angry enough. :lol

[E20]

Everybody involved in the death of the tiger (including the tiger itself) is burning in hell right now or will burn in hell. Book it.

[LuvBones]

The whole thing is suspicious. Why and how would a teenager hang a bloody limb out to "taunt" a tiger like that? San Francisco zoo has a lot of explaining to do..

[mrsmaalox]

The whole thing is suspicious. Why and how would a teenager hang a bloody limb out to "taunt" a tiger like that? San Francisco zoo has a lot of explaining to do..
I don't think the limb was bloody until after the tiger was taunted!

[LuvBones]

Oh, well I thought I heard that on the news.. they were talking about a trail of blood and a bloody shoe print on the fence. It just didn't make sense, but it was very early this morning, and I was half awake at the time. :lol

[mrsmaalox]

Oh, well I thought I heard that on the news.. they were talking about a trail of blood and a bloody shoe print on the fence. It just didn't make sense, but it was very early this morning, and I was half awake at the time. :lol
Believe me, I understand!

[ATRAIN]

Oh, well I thought I heard that on the news.. they were talking about a trail of blood and a bloody shoe print on the fence. It just didn't make sense, but it was very early this morning, and I was half awake at the time. :lol


HI D:)

[Kermit]

Yeah, it's not like the tiger wasn't angry enough. :lol

Yeah, but he was full. How angry can a tiger full of human flesh be?

[Extra Stout]

Disciplined for not using his taser first.
The taser would just make the tiger angrier. There are also tranquilizer darts; however, I doubt the San Francisco Police Department specifically stocks equipment to deal with escaped zoo animals.

[Ronaldo McDonald]

why do people have to go to the fucking zoo to see a tiger when you can turn on the damn tv and see one on the discovery channel and be in a recliner?

[Ronaldo McDonald]

they are real people. tigers do exist. what you see on the the discovery channel isn't fake. you don't have to make sure by going to a zoo

[Extra Stout]

why do people have to go to the fucking zoo to see a tiger when you can turn on the damn tv and see one on the discovery channel and be in a recliner?
Generations before yours engaged in an archaic, obsolete activity called "going outside and walking around." They still insist upon doing so, and there are places called "zoos" and "museums" and "parks" to accomodate them. There are a few advantages to their strange behavior; for example, their recliners don't have to be as wide.

[Kermit]

The taser would just make the tiger angrier. There are also tranquilizer darts; however, I doubt the San Francisco Police Department specifically stocks equipment to deal with escaped zoo animals.

I realize this. The taser comment was a joke going off the reprimand comment from Blaze. Still, the mental picture of a cop tasering a tiger is hilarious.

[Extra Stout]

I realize this. The taser comment was a joke going off the reprimand comment from Blaze. Still, the mental picture of a cop tasering a tiger is hilarious.
Since I frequently snag posters who fail to grasp my sarcasm, I hang my head in shame at my failure to catch yours.

[Ronaldo McDonald]

Generations before yours engaged in an archaic, obsolete activity called "going outside and walking around." They still insist upon doing so, and there are places called "zoos" and "museums" and "parks" to accomodate them. There are a few advantages to their strange behavior; for example, their recliners don't have to be as wide.

i'd rather have a fat ass than a missing arm, leg etc. museums are cool and so are parks. but zoos? what can you do at a zoo that you can't do at home in front of a t.v.? besides the obvious answer, which is getting eaten by a fdamn tiger.

[Extra Stout]

i'd rather have a fat ass than a missing arm, leg etc. museums are cool and so are parks. but zoos? what can you do at a zoo that you can't do at home in front of a t.v.? besides the obvious answer, which is getting eaten by a fdamn tiger.
You can't enjoy the smell of animal feces at home, unless you have pets and don't take care of them.

[MaNuMaNiAc]

i'd rather have a fat ass than a missing arm, leg etc. museums are cool and so are parks. but zoos? what can you do at a zoo that you can't do at home in front of a t.v.? besides the obvious answer, which is getting eaten by a fdamn tiger.You must be 2 meters wide :rolleyes

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

Ronaldo would go to the zoo if the tigers were signing autographs.

[LuvBones]

i'd rather have a fat ass than a missing arm, leg etc. museums are cool and so are parks. but zoos? what can you do at a zoo that you can't do at home in front of a t.v.? besides the obvious answer, which is getting eaten by a fdamn tiger.LMAO. I go to zoos and I don't have a missing limb. It's not like it's a frequent occurence. So do you not drive either? What about eating? You could choke you know... maybe you shouldn't do that either.

[some_user86]

Well, this makes it a little more interesting... The boy may have had nothing to do with the initial taunting and may have been trying to save his friend:
=================

Tiger Victim May Have Died A Hero
San Francisco Zoo Director Says Wall Around Tiger Pen Was Lower Than the Recommended Height

By JORDAN ROBERTSON
The Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO

The last minutes of a 17-year-old boy's life were spent trying to save his friend from a brutal tiger mauling at the San Francisco Zoo, only to have the animal turn on him, police and family members said.

Carlos Sousa Jr. and his friend's brother desperately tried to distract the 350-pound Siberian tiger, but the big cat instead came after Sousa.

"He didn't run. He tried to help his friend, and it was him who ended up getting it the worst," the teen's father, Carlos Sousa Sr., said Thursday after meeting with police.

The heroic portrait of Sousa and a timeline of the dramatic Christmas Day attack emerged as officials revealed that the tiger's escape from its enclosure may have been aided by walls that were well below the height recommended by the accrediting agency for the nation's zoos.

San Francisco Zoo Director Manuel A. Mollinedo acknowledged that the wall around the animal's pen was just 12½ feet high, after previously saying it was 18 feet. According to the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, the walls around a tiger exhibit should be at least 16.4 feet high.

Mollinedo said it was becoming increasingly clear the tiger leaped or climbed out, perhaps by grabbing onto a ledge. Investigators have ruled out the theory the tiger escaped through a door behind the exhibit.

"She had to have jumped," he said. "How she was able to jump that high is amazing to me."

Mollinedo said safety inspectors had examined the wall, built in 1940, and never raised any red flags about its size.

"When the AZA came out and inspected our zoo three years ago, they never noted that as a deficiency," he said. "Obviously now that something's happened, we're going to be revisiting the actual height."

The 4-year-old tiger, a female named Tatiana, went on a rampage near closing time Tuesday, killing Sousa and severely injuring the two others before it was shot to death by police.

Brothers Paul Dhaliwal, 19, and Kulbir Dhaliwal, 23, were at San Francisco General Hospital with severe bite and claw wounds. Their names were provided by hospital and law enforcement sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the family had not yet given permission to release their names.

Police said Kulbir Dhaliwal was the animal's first victim. As the tiger clawed and bit him, Sousa and the younger brother yelled in hopes of scaring it off him, police said. The cat then went for Sousa, slashing his neck as the brothers ran to a zoo cafe for help.

After killing the teenager, the tiger followed a trail of blood left by Kulbir Dhaliwal about 300 yards to the cafe, where it mauled both men, police said.

Four officers who had already discovered Sousa's body then arrived and found the cat sitting next to one of the bloodied brothers, police Chief Heather Fong said. The victim yelled, "Help me! Help me!" and the animal resumed its attack, Fong said.

The officers used their patrol car lights to distract the tiger, and it turned and began approaching them, leading all four to open fire, killing the animal, she said. Police are still investigating how Tatiana was able to leave the enclosure. At least one expert said the wall was low enough for the tiger to leap to the top. Zoo officials said a "moat" separating the habitat from the public viewing area that measured 33 feet across contained no water, and has never had any. They did not address whether that affected the tiger's ability to get out.

"I think it could be feasible for a cat that has been taunted or angered," Jack Hanna, former director of the Columbus Zoo, said Thursday. "I don't think it would ever just do it to do it."

Police have not addressed whether the victims had teased the tiger. On Thursday, Fong denied earlier reports that police were looking into the possibility that the victims had dangled a leg or other body part over the edge of the moat, after a shoe and blood was found inside the enclosure. No shoe was found inside, but a shoeprint was found on the railing of the fence surrounding the enclosure, and police are checking it against the shoes of the three victims, she said.

AZA spokesman Steven Feldman said the minimum recommended height of 16.4 feet is just a guideline and that a zoo could still be deemed safe even if its wall were lower. Accreditation standards require "that the barriers be adequate to keep the animals and people apart from each other," Feldman said. "Obviously something happened to cause that not to be the case in this incident."

Many other U.S. zoos have significantly higher walls around their tigers. Mollinedo said surveillance cameras and new fencing will be installed around the exhibit. The zoo was to remain closed Friday. --- Associated Press writer Lisa Leff contributed to this report.

LINK: http://abcnews.go.com/US/WireStory?id=4059218&page=1

[Sapphire]

The latest: Drunk Victim Admits Provoking Tiger
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323714,00.html

[Jimcs50]

The latest: Drunk Victim Admits Provoking Tiger
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323714,00.html

Tiger taunting is probably not the smartest thing to do.

[Sunshine]

I won't go so far as to say they got what they deserved........

[Sp Ginobili 20]

My teacher got married at that zoo a day or couple of days after that happened.