“I do think it curious, as pointed out by ByDesign, and as I alluded to in one of my responses yesterday, that no tigers have previously escaped from this enclosure (although it’s possible they have, but reports have been quashed by zoo authorities). It seems likely to me that something was different about the situation and circumstances on Christmas that allowed the situation to rapidly devolve into the nightmare it became.
Could the concrete in the tiger’s paws be an indicator that the concrete was eroding or otherwise degraded? For some reason I’m reminded of the scene in Clint Eastwood’s Escape From Alcatraz where they discover how the salt air of San Francisco bay had broken down the mortar in their cells...could something similar have taken place at the zoo?”
A VERY good point. Maybe it was the first time the tiger tried the wall, and it crumbled enough to give her purchase. But that still leads to why the tiger tried, and from my experiences, the tigers simply do not try. Most of the time they ignore what’s happening at the railing...it’s reasonable to think that the kids provided the means for the zoo to discover a flaw with the concrete,with tragic results.
I also keep in mind, tigers are ferociously territorial, and will fight to the death any other tiger or predator that enters it’s territory. THAT could be the trigger to the tiger trying the wall, or using a limb as a ladder along with teh concrete - they said concrete residue was found in the *back* paws, not the front, which,if accurate, could be telling.
I think the autopsy of the boys,a nd a thorough investigation of the wounds of the other two, along with the body of the tiger, and a close inspection of the grotto for foreign debris...and possibly interviewing friends, or looking at their computers and phones for evidence of trying other “stunts”, could go a long way. My gut feeling is the kids brough their own doom upon them, but I’m trying to be fair and allow that the zoo could be partially at fault as well, or unaware of the danger because they’d never had this happen. You’d think theyd’ have had idiots lean into the enclosure, or try to climb in, before - or witnessed behavior from the tiger in question that she was attempting to scale the wall.
“I’m still not convinced that the victims were without fault and just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
I’m with you 1000%. I think the only reason that tiger went over the wall, and hunched over it’s next kill before being shot, was because it had a reason to: anger.
If the zoo takes some blame, so be it, if they deserve it - and steps taken immediately to keep it from happening again. But I don’t want to martyr these kids if they caused it to happen, especially if they were doing it for 30 seconds of video.
Scenario:
Xmas day.
New video camera, or cell phone, or gadget with camera/video.
YouTube clips are the new coolest thing, getting clips with millions of hits. Go browse YouTube, you’ll see plenty of video of kids breaking the law and posting it. Dangling in a tiger pit could make a kid famous for a bit, no doubt. It’s all about one-upmanship with that crowd.
“Hey, lets go to the zoo, and screw around, and tape it!”
I could see that being the reason, very, very easily.
If it had been these three kids playing chicken with a subway train, or on a freeway, would as much attention be paid to the safety equipment of the train, or how “safe” freeways are for kids to play chicken?
Agh. Enough. I spoke my piece, now I’ll wait for any more info to be released. My love of those tigers, and the zoo, is conflicting with all the other issues. It’s too wierd a story right now.
There was undoubtedly human action (or inaction) responsible for the tiger's escape and subsequent mayhem. It has yet to be determined if that human element was:
1. Inadequate design of the enclosure from the ground up.
2. Inadequate/faulty construction of an acceptable design.
3. Negligence/failure to observe in place safety procedures on the part of zoo employees.
4. Deliberate failure to observe in place safety procedures on the part of zoo employees.
5. Accidental or deliberate breech of zoo security measures by patrons.
Obviously the zoo pays out big time if it's of choices #1-4. Because the exhibit has been around a while, I think problems in either #1 or #2 would have arisen sooner, so while they certainly can't be ruled out, I'm inclined to think they're less likely than #3-5. Likewise my scenario #4 is kind of bone chilling and wild to think of, but if PETA releases mink and lab rats, why not big cats? While it's possible, I just don't consider it as likely as either #3 or #5, and if it's #5, things aren't going to be as painful for the zoo either in terms of civil settlement or the court of public opinion.
The youtube/jackass angle is certainly credible, but just as I don't want to make a martyr of kids who might have provoked this, I don't want to make miscreants out of kids who might have been entirely innocent.
I'm content to sit back for now and let the chips fall where they may, and hopefully a thorough and objective investigation will allow for just that. I think it's safe to assume the next of kin will be cashing in on this; whether or not it's justified remains to be seen, although I have to admit things don't look that great for the zoo at this point. As much as I'm generally not a fan of the proliferation of surveillance cameras in public venues, they may have spared the zoo considerable liability in this incident...perhaps the cell phones or other recording devices turned up may still do just that.
maybe someone could figure out if any of these young men posted on youtube before....personally, I am not that familiar with youtube to do much research....same goes for facebook..