Tiger escapes and kills 1, hurts 2 in San Francisco

[DeltAlum]

Tatiana was born at the Denver Zoo.

[PeppyGPhiB]

My money is on a door being left open or someone helping her out of her cage, rather than her jumping over a 20-foot moat and up the 18 foot wall on the other side. That would be a HUGE leap.

It's a shame...the tiger was just being a normal tiger.

[NinjaPoodle]

Parents saw coverage, but didn't know tiger victim was their son
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl.../MNO6U4U72.DTL

AND

Trail of blood apparently led escaped tiger to victims
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...4SVN.DTL&tsp=1

[Tom Earp]

For crying out loud, this is what wild animals do, they are not tame no matter where they are born.

Seigried and Roy for example!

There is a place in Kansas where wild animals are and high school kids would come and have pictures taken until one bit a Senior there to get a picture taken! Oops do not do that any more.

If the zoo was closed, what were they doing there anyway? How did the cat get loose? Well, they are very athletic, but that tall a wall, and that wide a moat, come on!

Never run from a wild animal, they go for the chase. They are preditors and they hunt from insinct. Watch you home kitty stalk something!

[NinjaPoodle]

Tom, the zoo was open for the day and this happened around 5 pm when the closing sweep was about to happen.

[DeltAlum]

There is some speculation that zoo visiters were taunting the tiger.

That doesn't answer the question of how she got out, though.

[NinjaPoodle]

Originally Posted by DeltAlum

There is some speculation that zoo visitors were taunting the tiger.

That doesn't answer the question of how she got out, though.

True, on the news (local channel 4 KRON) they had commented that it was possible that the kids were taunting the animal and might have climbed into the moat. I haven’t checked for any updates (5:07pmPST) recently but I’m sure they police and zoo officials will come up with something.

I really feel bad for the young man's family. Hopefully, more information will come from the two survivors.
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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl.../MNFFU5G80.DTL
Tiger grotto wall shorter than thought, may have contributed to escape and fatal attack
Kevin Fagan, Cecilia M. Vega, John Coté,Marisa Lagos, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, December 27, 2007
12-27) 14:51 PST San Francisco - --

The wall of a moat that surrounds the San Francisco Zoo's tiger enclosure is far shorter than officials thought and also below national standards, authorities said today.

Zoo officials have gone back and forth on the grotto's measurements since a 350-pound tiger escaped on Christmas Day, killing 17-year-old Carlos Sousa Jr. and seriously injuring two of his friends. The survivors were identified by relatives and public records as brothers Paul Dhaliwal, 19, and Kulbir Dhaliwal, 23. The three young men were from San Jose.

Earlier this week, zoo officials said the moat's wall was at least 20 feet tall. Today, they said it was little over 12 feet. Since the investigation began Tuesday, officials have given at least five different measurements for the enclosure, which is surrounded by a moat, two walls on either side of the moat, a small patch of grass and then another waist-high fence. Experts say that the depth of the moat and height of the walls could have a large impact on the animal's ability to escape the enclosure.

Read the rest at the website...