Emergency services were called to Yorkshire Wildlife Park Resort in Doncaster on October 10 after a serious incident at its tiger enclosure. The park closed early in the afternoon, with police and paramedics at the scene.
Witnesses reported that a man jumped into the enclosure and was grabbed by one of the tigers, according to Yorkshire Live. Black screens were put up around the enclosure, and the park was evacuated. It will remain closed for the rest of the weekend.
Witness reports and emergency response
A video circulating on Facebook shows a man sitting next to a tiger in the enclosure while being attacked. Multiple witnesses said the man jumped into the enclosure and was seized by one of the big cats. Others reported hearing “five shots” of what some said were gas canisters fired into the cage.
An air ambulance landed at the scene, and police were also present. One visitor said: "People are saying they heard a gunshot and they say someone either jumped in, or fell in. There was an air ambulance and police everywhere. We’ve all been made to leave.
“When you’re leaving you have to walk past the tiger enclosure and they’ve put up all sort of black tarpaulin so you couldn’t really see. But there were loads of police and ambulance people and a stretcher in the enclosure as well.
“It wasn’t nice - there were lots of people who looked really upset."
Park statement and closure
Yorkshire Wildlife Park Resort confirmed the incident in a statement: "We can confirm that a serious incident has occurred today at the tiger enclosure.
"Our emergency response procedures were immediately activated, and emergency services are currently attending the scene.
"We are working closely with the authorities to ascertain exactly what happened. The safety and wellbeing of our visitors, staff and animals remain our highest priority."
The park is now closed and will remain closed the following day.
