The final video filmed by the man who was mauled to death by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park on Saturday afternoon (October 10) has emerged, showing him walking up to the animal after entering the enclosure.
The victim, who has not been named, filmed himself moments after he jumped into the tiger enclosure. The chilling footage shows him slowly approaching a wooden platform where one of the tigers is resting, with heavy breathing audible in the background. Shocked onlookers can be heard shouting "oh my god".
Sequence of events
Moments before, the man, who was alone and dancing to music, had asked a parkgoer to take a picture of him with the 200kg male Siberian tiger, Altai, in the background. He then began climbing into the enclosure as a woman desperately tried to hold him back, before dropping 12 feet to the floor.
When the tiger attacked, the man could be heard screaming "stop" several times and appeared to make a gesture for 'bad' in Makaton – a sign language system generally used by individuals who struggle to communicate.
Attack and response
Distressing footage of the attack was uploaded to social media and showed the tiger pawing at and toying with the man. Parkgoers said they then saw it jump onto the man's neck. Parkgoers were quickly evacuated and emergency services, including an air ambulance, rushed to the scene, but the man was confirmed dead at the scene.
Zookeepers were said to have done 'everything they could' to drive Altai off, firing five loud acoustic gun blasts in attempts to scare him.
Park closure and tiger's future
Yorkshire Wildlife Park, which remains closed, confirmed that Altai will not be euthanised following the incident. The zoo opened in 2009, with the Land of the Tigers attraction opening in 2011. The attraction is a purpose-built, two-acre reserve for Amur tigers, an endangered subspecies with around 500 left in the wild. Photos of the enclosure on the park's website show a high walkway for visitors and fencing above the section where the tigers can roam.
