Zoo recovering from wild hailstorm

The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo was closed Tuesday as the attraction got cleaned up from a wild hailstorm Monday that injured 14 guests, killed two zoo birds and severely damaged hundreds of vehicles in the parking lot.

Of the 14 patients injured, five were taken to a local hospital, while the others were treated on the scene, said Brian Vaughan, spokesman for the Colorado Springs Fire Department.

It wasn’t immediately clear what the conditions were of those transported to the hospital.

Daisy, a 4-year-old muscovy duck, and Motswari, a 13-yearold cape vulture, were killed during the hailstorm, which produced ice chunks the size of softballs.

The nearly 3,500 guests in the zoo on Monday were all evacuated and taken to Cheyenne Mountain High School on buses where they could reunite with family members.

The zoo estimates that about 400 cars in its guest parking lot suffered severe damage.

The road up to the zoo opened Monday night, so those who wanted to access their cars or get them towed were able to do so.

During the chaos, Vaughan said first responders and zoo officials worked together to get people sheltered as quickly as possible and make sure kid campers were all safe and accounted for.

“I don’t think people were prepared for the weather, especially tourists at the zoo,” Vaughan said.