Gorilla shot dead after young boy falls into zoo enclosure: The ‘right choice’, experts say

FRIGHTENING VIDEO: ZOO keepers shot and killed a 17-year-old gorilla that grabbed a four-year-old boy who fell into its enclosure.

ZOO keepers shot and killed a 17-year-old gorilla that grabbed and dragged a four-year-old boy who fell into its enclosure at Cincinnati Zoo.

Authorities said the boy, who fell about 3m, was expected to recover after being picked up and dragged by the gorilla for about 10 minutes. He was taken to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Centre.

Zoo director Thane Maynard said the zoo’s dangerous animal response team decided the boy was in “a life-threatening situation” and they needed to put down the 200kg male gorilla named Harambe.

Harambe, a 17-year-old male western lowland gorilla had to be shot and killed inside his enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo / Picture: WLWT News

“They made a tough choice and they made the right choice because they saved that little boy’s life,” Mr Maynard said.

“It could have been very bad.”

Mr Maynard said Harambe didn’t appear to be attacking the child, but he said it was “an extremely strong” animal in an agitated situation.

He said tranquillising the gorilla wouldn’t have knocked it out immediately, leaving the boy in danger.

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Mr Maynard said it was the first time the team had killed a zoo animal in such an emergency situation, and he called it “a very sad day”.

The lowland gorilla is an endangered species. Harambe came to Cincinnati in 2015 from the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas.

Hospital officials said they couldn’t release information on the child.

“They made a tough choice and they made the right choice because they saved that little boy’s life.” / Picture: WLWT News

Originally published as Gorilla shot dead after young boy falls into zoo enclosure: The ‘right choice’, experts say