Bear fatally shot after escape, attack on Florida zookeeper

JACKSONVILLE – A bear escaped an exhibit at a Florida zoo and attacked a zookeeper earlier than being fatally shot by staff.

The escape in a behind-the-scenes space occurred simply after 5 p.m. Wednesday on the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens.

Zoo officers stated in a Facebook publish that an emergency name was initiated and the ability’s “lethal weapons team responded immediately.”

“Our highest priority is always the safety of human lives, therefore, the bear was shot and killed,” the assertion stated. “We will be conducting an ongoing investigation over the coming days and weeks. We do not take this lightly. It is profoundly painful when we have a loss of an animal, especially under circumstances such as this.”

Jacksonville Fire Rescue took the zookeeper who was attacked to a hospital for therapy with accidents that weren’t thought of life-threatening.

The bear named Jonny was a five-year-old North American black bear.