Animal safety experts warned tiger death zoo four years ago
Inspectors’ report telling owners to review escape rules is revealed as tributes are paid to victim keeper
THE owners of a zoo where a keeper was mauled to death by a tiger were warned four years ago that it was not properly equipped to deal with escaped animals.
Hamerton Zoo, where Rosa King was killed on Monday, was heavily criticised by officials following their last inspection in 2013.
Their report concluded: “Inspectors consider that reliance on mobiles to communicate in an emergency is not sufficient and the system needs to be upgraded to ensure that all relevant staff can be contacted simultaneously.”
They also ordered the zoo to “review and replace ageing safety barriers where the structural integrity of the barrier is compromised”.
Inspectors also said: “The escape protocol should be amended to categorise animals of varying risks.”
The revelations came as Huntingdonshire council, which issues the zoo with a licence to operate, launched an investigation into Ms King’s death.
It is understood this will look into why the 34-year-old keeper found herself in an enclosure with a tiger and whether the immediate reaction of her colleagues and the zoo’s emergency procedures were adequate.
The zoo was only granted a new licence on condition that it upgraded its systems.
But Chris Draper, a director at the wildlife charity Born Free Foundation, said: “Something has clearly gone wrong in the system. It could be to do with training, infrastructure or the communications systems in place.
“The onus always falls on the zoos themselves to ensure the safety of their keepers and their visitors.”
He added: “In this case, no one is suggesting that Rosa King did anything wrong. It’s possible this was down to human error or failure in some way.”
Miss King’s death follows that of keeper Sarah Mcclay, 24, who was killed by a tiger at South Lakes Wild Animal Park, in Cumbria, in 2013.
It is thought Miss King, who was an experienced keeper and had worked at Hamerton Zoo for 14 years, may have got into trouble after going to the assistance of a colleague.
Hamerton Zoo is run by Andrew Swales, 58, and his son John, 32.
Mr Swales Snr was forced to apologise in 2008 after a nine-year-old boy was confronted in his back garden by a cheetah which had escaped from the zoo. Toby Taylor fled into his house as the cheetah began tearing his bicycle saddle and tyres to shreds.
In 2004, the zoo was criticised for selling monkeys to Chris Bienvenue, a Belgian dealer in rare and exotic crea-
‘Something has clearly gone wrong in the system. It could be to do with the systems or training’
tures. EU rules state zoos should only exchange animals with other zoos, without any money changing hands.
Yesterday, Miss King’s mother Andrea said: “She wouldn’t have done anything else, it’s what she has always done, it’s what she has always loved.”
Steven Eyre, who knew Miss King from regular visits to the zoo, said: “She was meticulous, she was very aware of the dangers, she would never have put herself at risk.” Hamerton Zoo did not respond to requests for comment and questions about any improvements it may have carried out to its safety and escape measures following the 2013 report.
Cambridgeshire police said the tiger was not hurt and had not been put down following concern by social media users about the fate of the animal.
Throughout yesterday local residents at the 25-home hamlet in which the zoo is located came to pay their respects. Among them was Jake, a young boy who had volunteered in the zoo.
In a card left at the entrance, he told Ms King she could rest with Blizzard and Ladybelle, two tigers who had died at the zoo, and Ares the cheetah.
He wrote: “I want to thank you for the amazing opportunity you gave me by allowing me to volunteer at Hamerton. You was a kind [sic] passionate lady who cared very much for the animals you cared for.”