COLUMBUS – Staffers placed the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on lockdown and scrambled its quick-response team until they could get a furry would-be escapee back into custody Saturday morning.
The entire zoo was placed on lockdown and guests moved to safety just after 11:00 a.m. when a seven-month-old female black bear cub got out of its exhibit and began to wander around zoo grounds, said Jennifer Wilson, director of communications
The immediate lockdown is normal protocol and was quickly downgraded to include only the immediate area around the cub, she said.
The zoo’s Emergency Response Team went into action and tranquilized the cub at approximately 11;30 a.m., Wilson said. The cub was crated and taken to a secure area.
The zoo’s North America region remained on lockdown as zoo staff worked to get a second black bear cub that was in the habitat secured inside the bear building sand the black bear habitat remained closed for the rest of the day, Wilson said.
The cubs were orphaned in the wild and Wilson says they came to the zoo a few months ago.