Lioness kills zoo worker in South Africa

Colleagues heard Joe Ramonetha screaming on Monday and rushed to help but it was too late, said zoo spokeswoman Letta Madlala. The 63-year-old was declared dead on arrival at the hospital.

A lioness sprung at the throat of the zoo worker on a rural conservation farm and killed him, apparently because security gates were left open, the Johannesburg Zoo said Tuesday.

Colleagues heard Joe Ramonetha screaming on Monday and rushed to help but it was too late, said zoo spokeswoman Letta Madlala. The 63-year-old was declared dead on arrival at the hospital, she said.

There had not been a fatal animal attack at the zoo in 50 years.

Ramonetha had been feeding the 11-year-old lioness or cleaning out her enclosure on the zoo’s conservation farm in Parys, about 75 miles from Johannesburg, Madlala said.

Associated Press

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