Dutch zookeeper dies after Persian leopards attack her at Beekse Bergen safari park

The attack

The attack happened on Saturday, 24 October, at around 11:00 in a covered enclosure for predators at Beekse Bergen safari park in the south of the Netherlands. Reports describe the victim as a woman who had worked at the park for about 40 years, starting at the age of 17 and returning after breaks over four decades. Polish reporting says she was carrying out routine rounds inside the enclosure, and the zoo has not yet explained how she came to be in the same space as the animals. Safety procedures at modern zoos strictly bar staff from sharing a space with wild predators without protection. Most reports say two Persian leopards were involved, with Polish coverage describing two male animals, while The New York Times, citing zoo spokeswoman Linda Engels, said at least one, and possibly two, leopards attacked her.

Rescue and death

Despite serious injuries to her head and neck, the woman managed to call colleagues on her radio, according to Dutch local media. An ambulance and a rescue helicopter were sent to the site, and she was flown to hospital in critical condition, where she went straight into surgery. The operation initially offered a glimmer of hope, but her condition deteriorated on the evening of Sunday, 25 October. She died on Tuesday, 27 October, and one Polish report says she never regained consciousness. The park confirmed her death, while her identity has not been made public because of strict Dutch privacy rules.

Investigation and the leopards

The park says an independent investigation will look into how the incident happened, but there are no surveillance cameras inside the enclosure, which makes it hard to reconstruct the final minutes before the attack. Zoo representatives said the predators behaved entirely in line with their species. The two leopards are normally kept apart from staff and were moved into the enclosure only because of poor weather. The park has ruled out euthanising them, and a spokesman told the Dutch broadcaster Omroep Brabant that the animals are predators and will remain so.

Memorial and condolences

The park issued its statement in cooperation with the grieving family. It said the death had deeply shaken everyone at the park and that its priority was supporting the family and colleagues. The woman began her career there as a teenager and spent nearly all of her adult life at the park. The park has set up a special place on its grounds where colleagues, friends and visitors can pay their respects and leave condolences.

What remains unclear

Sources differ on how many leopards attacked her, and none describes the exact sequence of events inside the enclosure. Reports agree that she was doing her morning rounds when the attack happened. Because there is no camera footage, the precise chain of events may remain unclear until the independent investigation concludes. The death is the only fatality reported so far in the coverage.