A man has died after climbing into a tiger enclosure and suffering serious injuries at a zoo in Yorkshire, police said.
Emergency services raced to Yorkshire Wildlife Park, near Doncaster, just after 1.30pm on Saturday to find a man had been mauled after entering the compound.
“Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene,” South Yorkshire Police said.
“Regarding rumours surrounding the condition of the tiger, the animal was uninjured and remained in the enclosure following the incident and there is no wider risk to the public,” they added.
The park has been evacuated and will stay shut for the remainder of the weekend, the zoo said.
Did you see what happened? Contact james.reynolds@independent.co.uk
Recap: What do we know know so far?
A man was killed on Saturday after climbing into a tiger enclosure, police have said.
The man has not been publicly identified, but police have notified his family.
Several different names have circulated on social media, without confirmation.
The man was earlier reported to have sustained serious injuries in the enclosure.
Police acknowledged video circulating on social media, which purported to show the attack.
They asked people not to share the distressing footage.
They also confirmed the animal was not harmed and remained in the enclosure.
The zoo will be closed for the remainder of the weekend, a spokesperson said.
'A hell of a lot of police came' after evacuation order, says witness
Witness Dominic Ford was visiting the zoo this afternoon with his young niece.
He said “a hell of a lot of police” then arrived on scene, with an ambulance and air ambulance.
In full: Man dies after tiger attack at Yorkshire zoo
The Independent’s full report on the incident in Yorkshire on Saturday afternoon:
'People were shouting to distract tiger,' says witness
Amy Wright, 36, was at the park with her family at the time of the incident.
She told The Sun: “You could see the blood where the tiger had dragged the man. Someone who saw it said it had him by the neck.
“People were shouting to try and distract it. We heard the gunshots. There were two, one after the other in quick succession.
“We headed for the exit but to get there you have to pass the tigers’ enclosure.”
'Warning shots' fired to scare tiger off, witnesses say
The Mirror, citing witnesses, say two shots were fired to scare the tiger off as it attacked.
Police have said the tiger was uninjured and remained in the enclosure.
Witness heard four gunshots before air ambulance arrived
Becky, from Doncaster, tells The Mirror she was at the zoo with her children when they were evacuated due to the incident in the tiger enclosure.
“We were at the tiger enclosure 10 minutes before the incident happened,” she says.
"We heard four gun shots, but didn't think anything of it until we heard the air ambulance trying to land and then one of the park staff approached us and told us we had to leave the park.”
Foreign secretary thanks emergency services for response
Ed Miliband, the foreign secretary and MP for Doncaster North, expresses his condolences following the incident in Yorkshire.
“I’m deeply saddened to hear of the incident at Yorkshire Wildlife Park,” he writes on Facebook.
“I send my thoughts and deepest condolences to the family of the individual who died. I am very grateful to the emergency services and staff of the park who responded.”
Man dies after entering tiger enclosure at Yorkshire zoo
A man has died after entering a tiger enclosure and being attacked by the animal at a zoo in Yorkshire.
Emergency services were called to Yorkshire Wildlife Park shortly after 1.30pm on Saturday after the unnamed victim reportedly climbed into a compound housing two of the big cats.
He sustained serious injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. The man’s family have since been informed, South Yorkshire Police said.
Read the full story:
Bulletin: Man dies after climbing into tiger enclosure
The latest, in brief:
