Photo: Screenshot from Sina Weibo

Flooding triggered by Typhoon Maysak severely damaged a zoo in Guigang, South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, leaving three lions dead and sweeping away more than 100 herbivores from over 20 species. To prevent predatory animals from escaping and possibly attacking people, zoo operators locked dangerous animals inside their enclosures, which has sparked a controversy.

The flooding severely damaged Guigang Zoo and swept away more than 100 herbivores from over 20 species. To prevent the escape of predatory animals and possible attacks on people, zoo operators waded through waist-deep floodwaters to block off the enclosures of the carnivores, chinanews.com reported on Saturday. 

After the floods subsided, zoo operators found that three of seven lions had died of drowning, while the brown and black bears survived due to their swimming ability.

According to Wang Liyuan, an operator at the zoo, floodwaters surged above 3 meters in the early hours of July 7. Wang and her husband Yin Feifei risked their own safety to secure lions, bears, and other predators in their enclosures to prevent the animals from escaping and possibly attacking people. 

However, the move later drew criticism from some online users, with a few questioning whether the lions should have been confined and arguing that their lives also mattered, Jimu News reported on Saturday. 

In response, zoo operators said securing the predators was a difficult but necessary decision during the flood. Zoo staff risked their safety to lock the lions, bears, and other predatory animals inside their enclosures, citing the danger an escape could pose to nearby residents, Jimu News reported. 

“If we had released the bears and lions, they would have posed a threat to the lives of people in the surrounding areas. We raised them ourselves, and we don’t want to see anything happen to them either,” Wang said, adding that once large predators escape, they are extremely difficult to control and could create enormous potential risks, according to Jimu News. 

“I only have one life, and if the animals had escaped, many more lives could have been at risk,” Yin said. He added that the surviving animals have been carefully monitored, comforted, and fed fresh food over the past few days after the flood, and are now gradually recovering, chinanews.com reported. 

According to the zoo, the flooding caused severe losses, with more than 100 animals still missing. The surviving animals are also facing difficulties due to shortages of feed and essential supplies. 

Many volunteers have stepped in to help the zoo, including a group from Shenzhen in South China’s Guangdong Province, who traveled to Guigang to deliver bottled water, animal feed, food, and disinfecting supplies, Jimu News reported. 

At present, the zoo has received assistance from the government and members of the public. “They provided us with supplies that helped us get through the crisis. My biggest hope now is to keep the surviving animals healthy,” Wang said, according to chinanews.com.

Global Times