Zion Wildlife Gardens yet another big cat accident at Zion

Chlidonias

Chlidonias

Moderator
Staff member
15+ year member
just released about 20 minutes ago:
Mauling at wildlife park - national | Stuff.co.nz
BREAKING A lion keeper has been mauled at Whangarei's controversial Zion Lion Park, sources say.

A police spokeswoman said four police officers were currently at the scene though she declined to give any further details.

Ambulance staff had been to the scene but have since left.

A tearful park staffer refused to comment. A statement would be released later today.

Whangarei's police operations and media staff were blocking calls from media on the issue.

In February, a man was attacked and wounded by a large cat at the park, which is home to 42 rare lions and tigers.
Click to expand...
 
and this right now:
Mauling at wildlife park - national | Stuff.co.nz
LATEST A keeper has been mauled to death at Whangarei's controversial Zion Lion Park, police have confirmed.

A police spokeswoman said that around 11am this morning two keepers went in to clean the white tiger enclosure when the white tiger attack one of the keepers.

She said despite the best efforts of the other keeper the tiger wouldn't let go. The man died at the scene before the ambulance arrived at th scene.

The tiger has since been shot dead.

The other keeper was not injured.

Eight foreign tourists on a tour of the park are understood to have witnessed the attack.

Police, the Department of Labour and MAF are all investigating.

The identity of the man would not be released until his next of kin had been informed.



Ambulance staff had been to the scene but have since left.

A Fairfax reporter outside the lion park, Deanna Harris, has reported what appears to be a hearse has arrived.

A tearful park staffer refused to comment. A statement would be released later today.

Whangarei's police operations and media staff were blocking calls from media on the issue.

Park employee Demetri Price required surgery after he was attacked in February by a white tiger he had been working with after it was spooked by a pride of lions.

Earlier this year Scottish teenager Lisa Baxter was left scarred after putting her hands through a hole in the fence and being bitten by a white lion cub.

The park is home to 42 rare lions and tigers.
Click to expand...
 
Everyone knows that this park is a disgrace, and yet why is it still able to remain open to the public? I never read anything positive about the establishment.:)
 
some interesting comments in the link above, at the moment probably about equal between people who think the park should be closed and those who think Busch is a legend. Most of them are commenting on such an "endangered" tiger being shot (it was one of those extinct white tigers :)). A couple of my favourites:
What a tragic event. Tragic for the family of the keeper and devastating that a beautiful rare animal was destroyed. Was this really necessary? Are there no tranquiliser darts at the park? I trust Craig Busch will now be re-instated to the park and be in a position to institute better care of the animals as he is a specialist in managing predators. I understand the current zoo operator is a bird specialist.
Click to expand...
I think if Craig Busch (the Lion Man) was there, this might never have happened.
The tiger might have realised he has been away for a while, and lashed out, Craig should be reinstated immediately, or they should close this place down in the meantime, as the animals obviously are unhappy that he's gone
Click to expand...

I like this one too just because its so baffling :)
No, I would not [agree the park should be closed]. That would be another classification of passengers measured by money. I think there is no guarantee you are more safe if you sit by the exit. It can even be more dangerous in some cases. Nothing can save you from your destiny.
Click to expand...
 
the incident was just on the tv news, I'll see if I can put a link to the video when it comes on the tv3 website later. The tiger was one of the white tigers, possibly the same one that attacked Demetri Price earlier this year (on the news the reporter said something like "3 news understands it is the same tiger..."). Of the eight tourists that witnessed the attack, at least some were children. The tiger was shot after the attack (not during). The man killed was senior cat keeper Dalu Mncube who appeared on the tv series many times.
 
Last edited:
Dalu seemed to be the parks head keeper, was responsible for the guided tours and interactions. Maybe they will actually properly open the park to the public instead of charging out the arse for private tours because of this.
 
There have been a number of concerns with this place and I wouldn't be surprised if this led to the park being temporarily shutdown, if not permanently.
 
This is all very upsetting.

As soon as I heard the news I thought: Craig Busch will say that this wouldn't have happened if he was still in charge of the park. And... lo and behold... this is exactly what he is implying.

The fact is, big cats are not domesticated. They are wild animals, and no amount of "training" will overcome this fact. There is no reason for keepers to be inside enclosures with big cats. This attack was inevitable, and, in my opinion, a direct consequence of the culture at Zion which was established by Craig Busch - namely one of bravado and machismo. I believe his need to physically interact with big cats is ego-driven, and is definitely not necessary in order to deliver a message of conservation.

I sincerely hope that this incident does not lead to his re-instatement as director. What Zion needs is a trained zoo professional who can implement industry approved safety protocols and improve animal welfare standards, while delivering an accurate conservation message.

But I doubt this will happen...
 
here's the 3news story. If you go to the link you can watch the video of the news piece
3 News > Home > Story > 'Hero' mauled to death at Lion Man's Zion lion park
The Lion Man says he is deeply upset at the death of a keeper at the Zion wildlife park in Whangarei.

Craig Busch, who is fighting a legal battle to get his job back at the park he made famous, says he will assist the police in any way he can as they investigate the death.

The dead man was mauled by a white tiger when he and another keeper went into the animal’s enclosure.

Orange cones mark the bloody trail inside the enclosure where senior handler Dalu Mncube was attacked and killed.

The attack happened at 11 a.m when Dalu, an experienced handler, and another keeper were cleaning the cage.

“Staff are devastated by this,” says Glen Holland of Zion Wildlife Gardens.

“This is a fantastic person, he is a personal friend. Everyone is clearly devastated.”

It is understood Dalu was killed by “Abu”, a white Bengali tiger - the park’s biggest.

The attack happened in front of 10 people - eight of whom were tourists.

“I’m not going to comment on what they saw, but there were two youngsters in the environment,” says Acting Northland Crime Manager Inspector Paul Dimery.

Witnesses, including the two children, were taken from the park late this afternoon.

When 3 News flew overhead, one of the staff members was holding a rifle.

“I can also tell you the tiger was immediately put down,” says Mr Holland.

At the time of the attack, one of the keepers managed to radio for help.

Dalu Mncube was the park's senior cat handler, and frequently appeared in the television series about the zoo.

3 News understands he was killed by the same tiger who attacked keeper Demetri Price in February.

At the time, Mr Price told Campbell Live Mr Mncube helped save his life by opening the animal's jaws with his bare hands, and spraying him with a fire extinguisher.

“The danger involved, is all relative, the way we go about it – generally you’re pretty damn safe,” Mr Price said.

Mr Mncube also made light of the danger at the time of the attack saying he was not afraid.

“I never got scared. You stay nice and calm. If I got scared and panicked we could have had two casualties,” he had told the New Zealand Herald at the time.

“It happened in a flash, It was over before we knew it.”

In a statement Craig Busch said he is devastated at Mr Mncube’s death.

“This is an absolutely tragic event for all involved. It is a terrible personal blow for me as I knew the keeper well,” he said.

"My thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues. Obviously I also know all the animals at the park which are owned by my Wildlife Trust, and I am deeply upset at the news of this attack."

Mr Busch is currently meeting with the employment relations authority to try and get his job back at the park.
He was sacked late last year when park management claimed he was not doing his job properly. His estranged mother has been in charge ever since.

Mr Busch's lawyer Daniel Erickson acknowledged that one of the issues raised yesterday at the Authority meeting by Mr Busch was safety.

Park employee Demetri Price required surgery after he was attacked in February by a white tiger he had been working with after it was spooked by a pride of lions.

Earlier this year Scottish teenager Lisa Baxter was left scarred after putting her hands through a hole in the fence and being bitten by a white lion cub.

The park is home to 42 rare lions and tigers.
Click to expand...
 
almost as if the cats are allies with the media, just as something happens with Craig Busch himself, the media are all over it, then there is an incident at Zion. This is just from where I'm standing from though.

Poor guy though. R.I.P
 
Shere_Khan said:
I sincerely hope that this incident does not lead to his re-instatement as director. What Zion needs is a trained zoo professional who can implement industry approved safety protocols and improve animal welfare standards, while delivering an accurate conservation message.
But I doubt this will happen...
Click to expand...
Glen Holland is former director of Auckland Zoo and has been in the zoo world a long time. When he was appointed to his position at Zion I had hoped that such changes as you refer to would take place but nothing happened. I assume he is constrained in what he can do by Patricia Busch.
 
Shere_Khan said:
The fact is, big cats are not domesticated. They are wild animals, and no amount of "training" will overcome this fact. There is no reason for keepers to be inside enclosures with big cats. This attack was inevitable, and, in my opinion, a direct consequence of the culture at Zion which was established by Craig Busch - namely one of bravado and machismo. I believe his need to physically interact with big cats is ego-driven, and is definitely not necessary in order to deliver a message of conservation.
Click to expand...
Exactly. Well said.
 
The death of Dalu was completely un-necessary. Why were they in an enclosure with two loose tigers in the first place. My opinion is the hands on methods is nothing short of a travesty and should be banned in New Zealand. The lack of regard for the predatory nature of these large cats by Zion was reinforced a couple of weeks earlier with Dalu taking two young Lions to New Plymouth to be 'Living Artworks' in a picture theatre. Zion Wildlife Gardens are nothing but a facility for using animals as entertainment for a commercial gain. Conservation? Inbred Tigers isn't conservation it's the genetic destruction of a species more like.

My sympathies go to Dalu's family for their loss.

On the other side of thing yes some certain forums are of course saying "If Craig was there this wouldn't have happened" Village Idiots. They think the animals there are cuddly toys. No they're predators as of natural selection.
 
Of course, if Craig had been there, this might have happened six months ago.

Hix
 
What annoys me is the white tiger bullsh*t that keeps getting spotued from this place. I'm on an animal managament course and there are loads of people who know a lot about animals, and yet some of the still believe they're a critically endangered subspecies due to hype from places like this. Is he not in charge of the park anymore?
 
iparently craig busch has been suspended from the park because he was mistrating the animals and i not sure its correct but he threatened to hit a royal white tiger with a fire extinguisher.
 
ashley-h said:
What annoys me is the white tiger bullsh*t that keeps getting spotued from this place. I'm on an animal managament course and there are loads of people who know a lot about animals, and yet some of the still believe they're a critically endangered subspecies due to hype from places like this. Is he not in charge of the park anymore?
Click to expand...
the Lion Man threads are listed here Zion Wildlife Gardens » New Zealand » ZooChat
you can read about the reasons for his dismissal and subsequent court appearances
 
GorillaBoy said:
iparently craig busch has been suspended from the park because he was mistrating the animals and i not sure its correct but he threatened to hit a royal white tiger with a fire extinguisher.
Click to expand...
please don't start rumours, we don't want this thread to have to be locked like some of the other ones had to be
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top