After nearly 40 years working, Dutch zookeeper killed by leopard at safari park

Attack at the safari park

The woman sustained serious head and neck injuries on Saturday while working inside an enclosure shared by two male Persian leopards. She had begun working at the park at age 17 and spent nearly all of her 40-year career there.

She used a walkie-talkie to alert colleagues that she had been injured, according to the park. An ambulance and trauma helicopter were sent to the site at about 11am local time.

Emergency care and investigation

The zookeeper underwent emergency surgery, but her condition deteriorated on Sunday evening. The park said at that point it did not expect her to survive; her death was confirmed on Tuesday.

An investigation is underway to establish why she was inside the enclosure. Park staff are generally not allowed to share space with predatory animals, the zoo said.

Park mourns colleague

The woman’s name has not been made public under Dutch privacy law. The park and her family issued a statement expressing sympathy for those close to her and saying her death had deeply affected them.

Her death came a little over two weeks after a man was killed by a tiger at a wildlife park in Yorkshire, England. An inquest into William Chapman’s death heard that an initial post-mortem examination recorded multiple traumatic injuries.

Separate Yorkshire inquest

The inquest heard Chapman had a history of mental illness and had been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He had experienced previous episodes of psychosis, the hearing was told. He had received support from adult mental health services in Doncaster and was described at the hearing as independent, with no care requirements. The Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust launched an investigation after his death.