A hippopotamus attacked zoo workers in India. The animal attacked the workers while they were cleaning the cage. One managed to escape, but the second was torn to pieces. The Indian Express has more details.
The incident occurred at the Lucknow Zoological Garden on Monday, December 18. The publication reports that the animal was supposed to be in a locked enclosure while Suraj and Raju were cleaning. However, someone left the cage open, allowing the hippo to escape. He injured Raju, who managed to escape. The second worker was torn to pieces by the beast on the spot.
It is known that the animal was transferred to Lucknow from another zoo a few days before the incident. Suraj worked at the Lucknow Zoological Garden for over 10 years. He is survived by his wife and daughter.
The director explained that the hippopotamus was kept in three enclosures. One was intended for showing the animal to visitors, in the second it was fed, and in the third, it was driven during cleaning.
“We will be looking into why the animal was not penned when two employees entered the enclosure,” the director said.