Three chimpanzees are shot dead after escaping from the Swedish zoo | Sweden
Three chimpanzees escaped from their enclosure at a Swedish zoo for several hours before being shot dead, according to Swedish media, while a fourth was injured and a fifth is believed to have returned unharmed to the zoo on its own.
“They are very strong animals and certainly not domesticated, says Daniel Wikdahl, police spokesman, told public radio SVT on Wednesday, adding that it had been the zoo’s decision to shoot the four because of the danger to the public.
Journalists who arrived at the scene after the escape at 1pm said police told them to “get back in your car and go” for their own safety. The daily Dagens Nyheter says so seven shooters were called in, with the help of a large number of police officers and several drones.
Annika Troselius, a spokeswoman for Furuviksparken near Gävle, 165 km north of Stockholm, said the animals had had to be euthanized because there was not enough tranquilizers to subdue them all.
“We had vets on site, but they made the assessment that we didn’t have enough anesthetic. That’s why we called for the shooters,” says Troselius to TV4. “This whole situation is tragic in every possible way. We take full responsibility.”
Troselius said the zoo believed the fifth chimpanzee had returned of its own accord. – But this is an ongoing event, she tells Dagens Nyheter. “We have to be sure that the last chimpanzees are actually in the enclosure, and this has to be done very carefully.”
The zoo urged residents to stay indoors, lock their doors and close their windows. “Chimpanzees are strong animals and have a high risk classification,” Troselius said. “Our staff are not allowed to work in close contact with them.”
Furuviksparken, which is currently closed for the season, has seven chimpanzees and is reportedly the only primate research station in the Nordics. It said in a statement that it did not know how the animals had escaped, but would investigate.
“We take this very seriously,” Troselius said. “Safety is very important to us and our first focus is to make sure no one gets hurt. Then of course we will investigate this so it can never happen again.”