Sydney’s Taronga Zoo staff reveal how five lions escaped

Sydney’s Taronga Zoo has revealed a crucial detail as to how five lions escaped from their enclosure on Wednesday morning, sparking an emergency with guests on-site.

A portion of fence and “digging marks” were the centre of an investigation after police arrived on the scene.

An emergency situation was declared after one adult and four lion cubs were found outside their enclosure at the harbourside zoo at about 6.30am.

Staff and guests staying overnight as part of the zoo’s “Roar and Snore” programme were directed to “run” to safe zones as a “code one” was activated.

Taronga Zoo confirmed at about 9am that the animals had been returned to their exhibit and that no staff or guests were injured.

The Zoo later confirmed a shoddy fence in the enclosure had led to the escape.

“An initial review of this morning’s incident has confirmed that an integrity issue with a containment fence enabled five lions to temporarily exit their main exhibit,” Taronga said in a statement on Wednesday afternoon.

“The lions are now in a back-of-house holding area while a full review continues.

“A full report will now be prepared for the NSW Department of Primary Industries.

“Keepers and vets report all lions are doing well.

“Taronga Zoo remains open and is extremely grateful to its staff and the community for their support today.”

Police and staff were seen at the scene.

Situation contained in 10 minutes

Taronga Zoo director Simon Duffy said the lions were found in a small area “adjacent to the main lion exhibit” but admitted exactly how they escaped was still under investigation.

He stressed there was a second “six-foot containment fence” that separated the lions from the rest of the zoo.

“I would remind everyone that Taronga Zoo itself has its own safety perimeter fence,” he said.

“So at no time did the lions exit that area or exit Taronga Zoo.

“The zoo has very strict safety protocols in place for such an incident and immediate action was taken.”

One lion cub had to be tranquilised, while the other four made their own way to where they were contained.

Although four of the lions made their own way back, one cub was safely tranquillised.

“This is a significant incident and a full review is now underway to confirm exactly how the lions were able to escape,” Duffy said.

He added that there was “less than 10 minutes between the lions exiting their main exhibit and the full emergency response”.

Duffy said the lions would not return to their exhibit until a full inspection.

“To make sure it is 100 per cent safe, and the lions won’t enter that area until that’s completed,” he said.

As it stands, Taronga Zoo has yet to announce how the lions escaped from the exhibit.

Taronga Zoo keepers were seen inspecting the fence. Photo / The Today Show, Channel 9

‘Digging marks’ inside lion exhibit

After the lions were accounted for, police were seen surveying the lion exhibit with staff, paying particular attention to a portion of the first containment fence.

Today host Karl Stefanovic said it appeared that workers were “trying to look for holes in the fences”.

“They seem to be tugging at some of those fences and various parts along the pretty large and high enclosures to try and ascertain exactly how they got out,” he said.

“They zeroed in on one particular part of the fence and they seemed to rectify that pretty quickly.”

Stefanovic also noted that there seemed to be “digging marks or something in the dirt”.

“You can only think of the questions being asked right now,” he said.

“Like, how on earth there was a point in the fence where these lions were able to get out of that enclosure there. It looks so secure.”

A statement released by the zoo confirmed that there are “strict safety protocols in place for such an incident”.

“All persons on site were moved to safe zones and there are no injuries to guests or staff,” the statement said.

“The zoo will be open as normal today. Further details will be provided when possible.”

Mogo Zoo CEO lifts lid on emergency procedures

Speaking to Today, zookeeper and chief executive of Mogo Zoo on NSW’s south coast Chad Staples said that zoos have predetermined evacuation plans in the event an animal escapes from their enclosure.

Staples said he believed the lions were most likely “contained within another enclosure”, however said he wasn’t aware of the exact circumstances around the escape.

“There are procedures around all facets of animal care and one of them unfortunately has to be animal escape,” he said.

Staples said it was most likely a “terrifying” situation for everybody involved.

“I feel that everyone who was there would be just terrified for the potential because the lions would be scared out of their minds as well,” he said.

“They thrive on their routine. They drive on knowing what’s happening. So I’m just so pleased that this has ended the way it has.”

The lion enclosure is located in the African Savannah portion of the zoo, which also houses giraffes, zebras, meerkats and fennec foxes.

There are a total of two adult lions and five cubs at Taronga Zoo. In August, the zoo welcomed the five cubs for the first time in 18 years.