Category: Business

Yorkshire Wildlife Park has revealed what will happen to Altai the tiger after it fatally attacked a visitor.

Emergency services were contacted after 1.30pm on Saturday when a man entered the enclosure and was attacked by the tiger at the park near Doncaster.

South Yorkshire Police said he died at the scene.

In a statement shared with LADbible, Yorkshire Wildlife Park confirmed that the park will remain closed today.

“We would like to thank everyone who has expressed their concern following yesterday’s tragic incident,” the statement read.

“Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies remain with the family and loved ones of the man who tragically lost his life.

“The park will be closed today and the staff team who were deeply affected by events will receive specialist support.

“Many, many people have contacted us about Altai, the tiger. We can reassure everyone that he is safe and well and will not be euthanised as a result of this incident.”

Yorkshire Wildlife Park has confirmed that Altai the tiger won’t be put down (SWNS)

It comes after Tiger King star Carole Baskin told The New York Post that the animal, in her view, ‘was not doing anything wrong’.

“The tiger was not doing anything wrong by being a tiger. I am relieved to hear that the animal was not harmed,” she said.

“We don’t yet know all the circumstances that led to this man’s death, and it would be wrong to speculate,” she explained.

“What we do know is that a tiger is a powerful wild predator, and no amount of captivity, training, or familiarity can change that.

“My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of the man who lost his life today at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.”

A South Yorkshire Police spokesperson has said that the individual died of his injuries.

Baskin said the tiger ‘was not doing anything wrong’ (Kelsey McNeal/ABC via Getty Images)

“At 1.35pm today (Saturday October 10) we received reports of a man entering a tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park,” they said yesterday.

“The tiger subsequently attacked the man, resulting in serious injury.

“Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

“The man’s family is aware and is being supported by specialist officers. Our thoughts are with them at this distressing time.

“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.”

Alice, a woman who was at the park, told LADbible that it was all ‘very sudden’ with ‘a member of staff running around telling people to evacuate but wouldn’t say anything about why’.

(SWNS)

“It felt chaotic. People near us were saying how they’d been near the tiger enclosure when they’d seen a young man climbing the fence into the enclosure where he had provoked the tigers which then retaliated,” she said.

“Some saying the tigers were shot, others saying it was gas canisters to spook them into their enclosures.

“When we left we had to walk the length of the park and pass nearby the tiger enclosure and could see emergency services dealing with the scene from afar but not close enough to make out any casualties etc.

“I was with friends and their young children. Thankful we weren’t in the area at the time.”

Ed Miliband, the foreign secretary and MP for Doncaster North, said he was ‘deeply saddened’ by the incident.

“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,” he wrote in a social media post.

Onlookers who watched the tragic tiger attack at Yorkshire Wildlife Park unfold have hailed the zookeepers for ‘doing everything they could’.

A man who has not yet been named was pronounced dead at the scene on Saturday (10 October), shortly after he entered the animal enclosure.

Further details about the horror incident have now been shared, as visitors who were observing the big cats revealed how panic ensued as they watched him grapple with the tiger.

Yorkshire Wildlife Park was promptly evacuated yesterday afternoon after shots rang out while guests were milling around the attraction in Doncaster.

One witness told LADbible they saw ‘staff running around’ frantically and ushering people towards the exit, ‘but wouldn’t say anything about why’.

Visitors said ‘chaos’ ensued on Saturday afternoon at Yorkshire Wildlife Park (SWNS)

“It felt chaotic,” she said. “People near us were saying how they’d been near the tiger enclosure when they’d seen a young man climbing the fence into the enclosure where he had provoked the tigers which then retaliated.

“Some saying the tigers were shot, others saying it was gas canisters to spook them into their enclosures.”

South Yorkshire Police confirmed that the man had entered the tiger enclosure before he was ‘subsequently attacked’, resulting ‘in serious injury’.

In a statement shared with LADbible, the force said: “The tiger remained in the enclosure following the incident and there is no wider risk to the public.

“We are aware of videos circulating online and we would encourage people not to share this distressing footage.”

‘It’s horrific’

Those who watched the horror unfold in the Land of the Tigers area in the park have told how zookeepers sprang into action after the man entered the enclosure.

In video circulating on social media, visitors can be heard shouting at the tiger in a bid to distract it, while staff members then fired several gunshots into the air.

According to the reports, the animal eventually fled and hid nearby. The tiger was not injured. A ‘black screen’ was then erected around the enclosure.

The Manchester Evening News reported that the tiger is ‘absolutely fine’ despite the terrifying incident, while sharing some further details.

A source told the publication: “From start to end the incident was over within minutes. The keepers did everything they could. It’s horrific.”

The man who entered the tiger enclosure was pronounced dead at the scene (Annabel Lee-Ellis/PA Wire)

“The barriers are huge,” they said of the enclosure. “You would have to really want to get inside the enclosure to be able to do it.”

The Land of the Tigers attraction, which opened at Yorkshire Wildlife Park opened in 2011, is on a purpose-built two-acre reserve for Amur tigers.

These are an endangered subspecies and only around 500 are left in the wild.

The park is home to two of these tigers – one male named Altai, and one female called Tschuna.

After reports of a man being attacked by a tiger at Yorkshire Wildlife Park yesterday (10 October), police confirmed that he had died at the scene.

He was seen entering the tiger enclosure at the park near Doncaster with witnesses sharing what happened in the moments before.

South Yorkshire Police were called at 1:35pm on Saturday as the man, who has not yet been named, made his way in.

Witnesses described ‘chaotic’ scenes at the park as the sound of ‘shots’ were reportedly heard. One told LADbible: “People near us were saying how they’d been near the tiger enclosure when they’d seen a young man climbing the fence into the enclosure where he had provoked the tigers which then retaliated.”

Police confirmed the man was ‘attacked’, resulting in ‘serious injury’ as emergency services were unable to save him.

It is currently not clear if the man was visiting the park alone before he climbed into the enclosure. (SWNS)

Witnesses describe the moments before

One told The Mail on Sunday that the man seemed to ‘psyche himself up’ with a ‘dance’ in the spectator are before climbing into the enclosure.

A woman who had been at the park claimed on Facebook that he had his ‘AirPods in dancing’ and ‘happily enjoying seeing the tiger’.

“He obviously wasn’t with anyone and he asked a total stranger to take a picture of him with the tiger in the background,” she claimed. She believed he ‘just wanted to play with the tiger’.

Another person who had also scene him in the viewing area with his ‘ear pods’ in commented: “It’s incredibly sad and people really do need to show more compassion. I agree that the park handled it really well and ensured everyone stayed calm when we were leaving.”

The tiger, called Altai, was not injured in the incident and remained in its enclosure.

Altai the tiger was uninjured and remained in the enclosure. (SWNS)

Police statement

In a statement, South Yorkshire Police said: “At 1.35pm today (Saturday 10 October) we received reports of a man entering a tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.

“The tiger subsequently attacked the man, resulting in serious injury.

“Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene. The man’s family is aware and is being supported by specialist officers. Our thoughts are with them at this distressing time.

“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.

“Following the incident, Yorkshire Wildlife Park was evacuated and officers remain on scene carrying out enquiries. We are aware of videos circulating online and we would encourage people not to share this footage.”

Yorkshire Wildlife Park statement

Having closed for the remainder of the weekend, the park shared on Saturday: “We can confirm that a serious incident has occurred today at the tiger enclosure.

“Our emergency response procedures were immediately activated, and emergency services are currently attending the scene. We are working closely with the authorities to ascertain exactly what happened.

“The safety and wellbeing of our visitors, staff and animals remain our highest priority. The park is now closed and will remain closed tomorrow.”

Christa Pike is back in prison, which raises questions about what happens next.

The inmate, who is on death row for the 1995 beating and stabbing death of classmate Colleen Slemmer, survived two doses of pentobarbital during an attempted execution last month (30 September).

On Saturday, the 50-year-old was discharged from hospital and is now back at the Debra K Johnson Rehabilitation Centre, the women’s prison where she was housed for 30 years.

“She is grateful to the first responders and her medical team for their care in these extraordinary circumstances. She is continuing to receive medical care at the prison, and we will continue to track her recovery,” her lawyers said in a statement.

The Tennessee Department of Correction has not said what went wrong in the execution, while various medical experts have focused on whether a problem with the IV line caused the drug to pool in her tissue instead of entering her bloodstream.

Pike’s lawyers wrote in a court filing that ‘apparently at no point did any member of the execution team realise that the IV lines were not correctly placed’.

What happens next?

Other prisoners who have survived executions (LADbible/Tennessee/Idaho/Alabama/Ohio Department of Correction)

Three possible outcomes for her case are a second execution attempt using a different method, another attempt using lethal injection, or commuting her sentence.

But any second execution attempt could face significant constitutional challenges, according to Charley Dugdale, Associate Head of Law and Associate Professor at St Mary’s University Twickenham.

Dugdale tells LADbible that ‘existing US precedent suggests that a state may be permitted to make a second attempt’.

“In Louisiana ex rel Francis v Resweber (1947), the Supreme Court allowed Louisiana to try again after an electric-chair execution failed which the Court treated as an unforeseeable mechanical accident. This does not necessarily answer Pike’s case, but if Tennessee seeks another execution date, her lawyers could challenge it on several grounds,” she says.

How Pike’s lawyers can challenge a second execution attempt

Christa Pike pictured in 1995 (WBIR10)

Dugdale details seven ways Pike’s lawyers can appeal against another execution:

• An Eighth Amendment claim based on the physical and psychological effects of the first attempt.
• An argument that another lethal injection would expose Pike to a substantial risk of severe pain.
• A challenge based on Pike’s medical conditions and what happened during the first attempt.
• A request to prevent another execution until Tennessee discloses the findings of its investigation.
• Due process arguments concerning transparency and Pike’s ability to challenge a new execution plan.
• A challenge to any attempt to use the same protocol without meaningful changes.
• A competency claim if the failed execution caused injuries affecting Pike’s ability to understand the nature and purpose of the punishment.

“The legal significance of the investigation will therefore be considerable. What caused the first failure, and what Tennessee proposes to do differently, are likely to be central to any future litigation,” she adds.

Why Pike is on death row

Pike has been discharged from hospital and is back at women’s prison Debra K Johnson Rehabilitation Centre (Tennessee Department of Corrections)

At the age of 18, she carried out what a judge called the ‘horrific’ and ‘brutal’ murder of Colleen Slemmer in Knoxville in 1995.

Pike and two friends lured the 19-year-old into the woods, where they beat, tortured, and killed her. Pike was sentenced to death at the age of 20.

Her legal team argued that her death sentence was disproportionate due to her severe childhood trauma, while Assistant Federal Defender Stephen Ferrell said was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post traumatic stress disorder.

In her clemency petition, Pike wrote: “I was a mentally ill 18-year-old kid. It took me numerous years to even realise the gravity of what I’d done. Even more to accept how many lives I affected. I took the life of someone’s child, sister, friend. It sickens me now to think I had the ability to commit such a crime.”