A witness has revealed that a man mauled to death by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park appeared to psyche himself up with a dance before climbing into the animal's enclosure. The man, believed to be in his 20s, was seen performing what appeared to be a dance in the spectator area before scaling a fence and entering the enclosure near Doncaster.
He was carrying a mobile phone and wearing AirPods when he approached the enclosure, according to a witness who described his behaviour before the fatal attack. The man was killed by a 30-stone Siberian tiger after entering its enclosure on Saturday afternoon, with horrified families watching as the animal attacked him.
Witness describes moments before attack
One witness said the intruder appeared agitated and was grabbed by the throat within seconds of climbing over the fence. The man told the Daily Mail he appeared to do a dance seconds earlier.
Footage circulating online showed the tiger, named Altai, circling the man on the grass before violently shaking him. The victim was heard crying out “no, no” as visitors desperately tried to distract the animal.
Before the attack, the man was seen kneeling on the ground with his arms spread wide. He also repeatedly pointed at the tiger and shouted “stop”. A woman's voice could be heard saying: “I tried to stop him.”
Emergency response and police statement
Zoo keepers rushed to the scene armed with gas-powered acoustic guns, firing five loud blasts in an attempt to drive the tiger away from the man. Paramedics, including an air ambulance crew, also raced to the enclosure with blood transfusion kits in a desperate attempt to save him. However, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
South Yorkshire Police said officers received reports of a man entering the enclosure at 1.35pm on Saturday. A force statement said: “The tiger subsequently attacked the man, resulting in serious injury.
“Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
“The man's family is aware and is being supported by specialist officers. Our thoughts are with them at this distressing time.”
Police urged members of the public not to share footage of the attack. The force confirmed the tiger was uninjured and remained in its enclosure, adding there was no wider risk to the public.
Park closure and tiger background
Visitors were evacuated from the wildlife park following the incident, and the attraction was closed for the remainder of the day. Staff were later seen putting up black plastic sheeting around part of the enclosure to shield the area from view.
A spokesman for Yorkshire Wildlife Park said the attraction had immediately activated its emergency response procedures and was working with the authorities to establish exactly what had happened.
The spokesman said: “We can confirm that a serious incident has occurred today at the tiger enclosure.
“Our emergency response procedures were immediately activated and emergency services attended 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.”
Altai arrived at the park in February 2025 from Dyreparken Zoo in Norway, where he was born. The park's Land of the Tigers area opened in 2011 and features a purpose-built, two-acre reserve for Siberian tigers, an endangered species with around 500 estimated to remain in the wild.
