A fire at The Hoo Zoo and Dinosaur World near Telford, Shropshire, has resulted in the deaths of three animals and forced the attraction to close on Monday.
The family-run zoo confirmed the deaths in a video update shared on Monday evening, with owner Will Dorrell stating that the fire broke out in the zoo office around 7 AM. The blaze was discovered 30 to 45 minutes later by the owners and a staff member.
Three pet animals lost
Mr Dorrell said: "Fortunately, at that time the fire was contained to within the building, but sadly, three animals did lose their lives. We lost some stick insects, a hedgehog, and a snake, all of which were personal pets ourselves and not part of the zoo. We are absolutely devastated about it."
Two of the zoo's owners, Mr Dorrell's wife and father, were taken to hospital as a precaution after suffering smoke inhalation but were later discharged. Mr Dorrell said: "They both ended up in hospital, but I'm very, very pleased to say that they're both back now. They were just taken to be checked over for smoke inhalation... they're both absolutely fine."
Fire contained to office
The cause of the fire has not yet been established. Mr Dorrell praised Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service for preventing the blaze from spreading to neighbouring buildings, many of which are made of wood. He said the zoo office had been "completely gutted", while the first aviary sustained only minor damage, which he said was "hopefully rectifiable".
He added: "Without Shropshire Fire and Rescue, that wouldn't have been possible, and we probably would have lost significantly more, a lot more animals."
Reopening and bookings
The zoo is expected to reopen to visitors on Tuesday, with Mr Dorrell asking people to "bear with us" while repairs continue. He thanked those whose visits had been disrupted and said anyone with bookings would be contacted to rearrange them: "Those of you haven't yet been in touch with us, we will be reaching out over this evening and into tomorrow... offering to rebook your tickets."
Hoo Zoo and Dinosaur World was recently named Tripadvisor users' second-best zoo in the UK for the second consecutive year and was also voted the ninth-highest rated zoo in Europe earlier this year.
