Tokyo zoo stages escape drill

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Friday, 7th February 2014
In General Japan News,

Visitors to Ueno Zoo in Tokyo were no doubt surprised to see a keeper in a full-sized gorilla costume running about yesterday (February 7th ), followed by a group of colleagues giving chase.

The peculiar antics were actually part of a beakout drill, designed to test the skills of the keepers and give them the opportunity to see how they would perform in the actual event of an escaped animal.

Zookeeper Natsumi Uno, who agreed to switch places with the creatures and don the gorilla suit, said it had been an interesting experience.

"In my job, we sometimes have the chance to catch an animal, but never to get caught," she said. "When the other keepers chased me, I could really understand the animal’s feelings."

Wildlife fanatics watched as the pretend primate was cornered by dozens of staff wielding nets before being subdued with a pretend stun gun and taken carefully into a nearby pick-up truck.

Written by Mark Smith