17.6.15

Escaped Tiger From Zoo Kills Man In City Centre

A tiger has killed a man in the centre of Georgia's capital, and wounded another person, after escaping from a zoo.
The animal, which fled its enclosure in Tbilisi Zoo after it was destroyed by heavy flooding, has been killed by police.It was first thought that the victim had been killed by a lion, but the Interior Ministry later confirmed a tiger was responsible.
The tiger eluded a citywide search for escaped animals because it was in a factory.
Alexander Shavgulashvili, who saw the attack, said: "When (the victim) entered the tiger jumped from the room, it bit him on the neck.
"At first, we could not enter the room, then we broke the metal bars and the tiger escaped because it was scared of the noise."
Hippopotamuses, bears and wolves were released onto the streets in Georgia's capital following the severe weather - but the country's Prime Minister had insisted that all dangerous animals had been accounted for.
Many of the animals drowned in the floodwaters, while others were euthanised or shot dead by police.
Residents had been told to stay indoors after the mass escape, and report any sightings of zoo animals to the authorities.
At least 15 people were killed after the torrential downpours on Saturday.
The floods turned a stream that runs through Tbilisi into a raging torrent that destroyed houses, tore up roads and carried away cars.
On Tuesday, zoo spokeswoman Mziya Sharashidze had said eight lions, all seven of the zoo's tigers and at least two of its three jaguars were killed.
Only two of the zoo's 14 bears survived, while nine of its 17 penguins died, she added.
Hundreds of homeless dogs at a private shelter near the zoo also died in the flooding, according to staff.

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