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A gorilla escaped its enclosure and went on the loose at London Zoo.
Members of the public were kept inside buildings as the site went on lockdown. Zookeepers patrolled with tranquiliser darts, while armed police were also photographed on site and a helicopter monitored the scene from overhead.
@SkyNewsBreak lock in at London Zoo - Gorilla on the loose? pic.twitter.com/X9ukqgrI9o
— hannah (@hannahod) October 13, 2016
But reports in the last few minutes suggest the animal has been successfully located and tranquilised by zoo staff, hopefully waking up with nothing too much worse than a sore head – although his bid for freedom at an end. Good effort though.
Update: ZSL London Zoo released the following statement...
'A male gorilla got out of his den at ZSL London Zoo and into a non-public keeper area at 5:13pm on Thursday, 13 October 2016. The gorilla remained contained within the exhibit’s off show area.
'Staff responded immediately and the 18-year-old gorilla - named Kumbuka - was tranquilized by vets and returned to his den, where we can confirm he is awake and well.
'It is not yet confirmed how the incident occurred and a full investigation will be carried out to determine what happened.
'The exhibit is secure and we are grateful to all of our staff and visitors for their cooperation, enabling us to resolve the situation quickly and efficiently.'