A trained tiger handler has been hospitalized with arm injuries following an attack by one of the animals at an Australian theme park.
According to the Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS), the woman, who is in her 40s, is in stable condition after suffering cuts and scratches while working at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast.
“This was an isolated and rare incident, and we will conduct a thorough review accordingly,” the company said in a statement.
The popular theme park – which is visited by almost two million people every year – is home to nine Sumatran and Bengal tigers.
QAS said medics were called to the scene at 09:01 local time on Monday (23:01 GMT on Sunday) “following an incident with a tiger” and that the woman was immediately taken to the Gold Coast University Hospital, where she remains.
“She was quite pale and feeling unwell, but in general well and was able to be transported,” QAS acting district director Justin Payne told ABC News.
“She is one of the experienced and senior handlers there at Dreamworld… it’s good to see that she was able to be looked after by other support staff there,” he added.
Dreamworld’s Tiger Island, one of the few interactive tiger exhibits globally, has been operating for nearly 30 years. It features two daily shows where visitors can observe the tigers “glide underwater” in a splash pool and watch their feeding sessions.
Local media reports highlight that there have been several incidents at the enclosure over the years, including an event in 2011 when a nine-year-old male Bengal tiger named Kato bit two handlers.
A Dreamworld spokesperson stated that the company’s current priority is to provide immediate support to the employee involved in Monday’s attack.