Tiger mauls keeper to death as visitors throng New Zealand zoo

A New Zealand zookeeper was killed Sunday by a Sumatran tiger on a morning when the zoo was open to visitors. Police said they were called to the Hamilton Zoo at 11 a.m. after reports a female zookeeper had been attacked by one of the zoo’s five tigers. Police said the woman died at the scene. The zoo asked all visitors to leave and said it was closing its doors until Thursday. The keeper was later named as Samantha Kudeweh, 43, who held the job title of Zoo Curator.

They seemed a bit panicky. I thought an animal had escaped but they guaranteed that an animal did not escape.

Visitor Adam Rich

The zoo is owned and operated by the Hamilton City Council. Council spokesman Jeff Neems said the tiger that attacked the woman is named Oz and is the zoo’s only adult male tiger. He said Oz was currently safely contained inside his enclosure. He said he had no comment on whether the animal was likely to be put down. He said the public was never in danger during the incident and that all animals had remained contained in their enclosures.

Our focus at this time is on providing the adequate support for our staff and family members who have been affected by this tragic incident.

Hamilton City Council.Council spokesman Jeff Neems

Asia-Pacific Hamilton zoo