Zoo Worker Accidentally Shoots Tranquilizer Dart Into Employee Wearing Gorilla Suit
The Huffington Post | By Sara Gates Email
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Posted: 06/05/2014 12:32 pm EDT Updated: 06/05/2014 3:59 pm EDT
If it looks like a gorilla and walks like a gorilla, it's a gorilla -- right?
Not always, as one zoo worker in the Canary Islands learned this week. According to local Spanish reports, a veterinarian at Tenerife's Loro Parque zoo mistakenly shot a tranquilizer dart into an employee dressed in a gorilla suit.
The disguised worker fell to the ground and was soon transported to a local hospital. He arrived in serious condition, reportedly from an allergic reaction to the dart, which contained a powerful sedative capable of putting down a gorilla.
La Opinión de Tenerife reports that the man had donned a gorilla suit and was running around the park in a drill to prepare employees for an actual animal escape. The tranquilizer-wielding veterinarian apparently did not know the exercise was in progress and shot the zoo worker in the leg from a distance.
Local police arrived at the zoo following reports that a gorilla was loose. The incident was reportedly deemed an accident.
It's not the first time Loro Parque has made headlines for safety-related incidents. Orca whales at the zoo's marine park have attacked trainers in the past, culminating in the death of 29-year-old trainer Alex Martinez in 2009. The Spanish zoo has also been the subject of multiple animal welfare violations.
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