A man mauled to death by an Amur tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park entered the enclosure while listening to music and told the big cat to "stop being naughty", eyewitnesses have said. South Yorkshire Police confirmed the victim was visiting the attraction alone on Saturday afternoon when he entered the reserve housing Altai, a 200kg (30-stone) tiger.
Witnesses describe 'trance-like' behaviour
Panicked bystanders pleaded with the young man to "play dead" as the animal approached, but he did not follow their warnings and spoke to the big cat instead. Witnesses described seeing the man dancing alone with headphones on shortly before the attack.
Park visitor Anthony Hunt, who was at the reserve with his partner Scarlett, noticed the big cat's posture change suddenly. "We noticed the tiger's behaviour change. Its eyes locked on to something in the enclosure," Mr Hunt said. "When Scarlett was taking photos, we suddenly saw in the camera lens that a guy had entered the enclosure."
He described the victim as appearing to be "in a trance" and "not attached to reality". After entering, the man knelt on all fours, prayed, and looked up at the sky. Mr Hunt added: "The tiger was still on the landing at this point, but then leapt off the landing and sniffed the guy."
Victim asked for photos before entering
Another visitor, Alex Underwood, said the victim asked his girlfriend to take photos of him on the raised bridge moments before climbing inside. "He said 'can you take a photo of me please?'. She said 'yes'. Then he said 'another one, another one'. He didn't look into the camera. He looked at us both and said thank you," Mr Underwood recalled.
Emergency services were called to the scene at around 1.30pm after witnesses saw a man climb down and jump into the enclosure. A woman reportedly tried to pull him back, but he managed to enter the enclosure before being attacked. Emergency services, including two land ambulances, a doctor, and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, responded to the incident. South Yorkshire Police confirmed the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
Park protocols and investigation
Yorkshire Wildlife Park activated its emergency protocols following the attack. Staff members affected by the tragedy are receiving specialist support, and the park remained closed over the weekend and through Monday (October 12).
In a statement, park bosses confirmed that Altai is safe and well, adding that the animal will not be euthanised. The City of Doncaster Council has opened a health and safety investigation into the incident.
Animal keeper Reece Oliver told Sky News that the tiger was likely acting out of predatory curiosity rather than aggressive intent: "If it really wanted to kill him, it would have probably killed him within 10 seconds. The only thing that goes into that enclosure normally would be enrichment toys or food. I think he was probably just playing, using his predatory instinct, seeing what it was, and unfortunately it ended up being a fatal attack."
South Yorkshire Police previously said: "We were called at 1.35pm today (Saturday 10 October) to reports of a man entering the tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park at Branton, Doncaster. The tiger subsequently attacked the man and this has resulted in serious injury. Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene. 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."
Following the confirmation of the man's death, police added: "Our thoughts are with [the family] at this distressing time. We are aware of videos circulating online and we would encourage people not to share this footage."
Ed Miliband, MP for Doncaster North, expressed his condolences to the victim's family and praised the swift response of emergency services and park staff.
