Three animals died after a fire broke out at Hoo Zoo and Dinosaur World near Telford, England, on Monday morning. The zoo's owner confirmed the news in a video update after the blaze was extinguished.
Fire broke out in zoo office
Owner Will Dorrell said the fire started around 7 AM in the zoo office building. It was discovered 30 to 45 minutes later by the owners and a member of staff. At that time, the fire was contained to the building, but three animals lost their lives.
Mr Dorrell said: "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."
Owners taken to hospital
Two of the zoo's owners - his wife and father - were taken to hospital as a precaution after suffering smoke inhalation. They 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 service praised
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 a small amount of 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 plans
The zoo is expected to reopen to visitors on Tuesday. Mr Dorrell asked 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.
He said: "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."
