Key takeaways:
- The keeper was attacked Saturday while caring for two Persian leopards and died Tuesday after surgery.
- There are no cameras in the enclosure, and the park says an independent investigation will examine the attack.
- A park spokesperson said the leopards were behaving naturally and would not be euthanized.
A longtime zookeeper at a Dutch safari park has died after she was attacked while caring for two Persian leopards, the park said Tuesday. The keeper, who began working at Beekse Bergen at age 17, had spent nearly 40 years there, apart from a few short breaks.
The attack happened Saturday in an indoor facility at the park in the south of the Netherlands. The leopards had been brought inside because of bad weather and are usually kept apart from staff. What happened in the enclosure remains unclear: There are no cameras inside.
The woman suffered serious injuries to her head and neck and underwent emergency surgery, but died Tuesday. The park said an independent investigation would examine the circumstances of the attack.
Despite her injuries, the keeper managed to alert colleagues using a walkie-talkie, according to NL Times, as reported by the BBC. She was taken to a hospital by helicopter in critical condition, the BBC reported.
“The keeper started at the Beekse Bergen Safari Park at the age of 17 and worked here, with only a few short interruptions, for nearly 40 years,” the park said in a statement quoted by CBS News. “Her passing also deeply affects us all, and we are intensely grieving with her family, friends, and loved ones.” The park asked for privacy for her loved ones and its staff as they grieve.
A park spokesperson told local outlet Omroep Brabant that the leopards were behaving naturally. “They are, and remain, predators,” the spokesperson said. The BBC reported that the spokesperson said the animals would not be euthanized.
Beekse Bergen said its immediate focus was supporting the keeper’s family and colleagues. It also plans to create a memorial location where guests and staff can leave condolences, according to the BBC.
Fatal attacks on animal caretakers have occurred at other parks. CBS News reported that a keeper was killed by a lion at a safari park in Thailand last year after stepping out of his vehicle. In October 2024, lions killed a keeper in Crimea after a door in their enclosure was left unlocked. A Siberian tiger killed a keeper at Zurich’s zoo in 2020, while a lion killed a worker at a North Carolina conservatory in 2018 during a routine cleaning. CBS News also reported that a Malayan tiger killed a keeper at Florida’s Palm Beach Zoo in 2016 after a door that was supposed to be locked was left open.
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