Disturbing video footage captures the moment a woman climbed over a zoo fence to pet a tiger, narrowly escaping a potentially fatal situation.
The woman breached zoo protocols by jumping over a fence to get near a Bengal tiger at the Cohanzick Zoo in New Jersey.
The video, shared on Facebook by the Bridgeton Police Department, shows the woman standing close to the wire enclosure of the Bengal tiger pen, home to brothers Rishi and Mahesha.
She then inserted her hand through one of the gaps in the fence while the visibly agitated tiger paced back and forth.
At one point, the tiger, which originates from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and southwestern China, places both paws on the wire fence, causing the woman to realize the danger and retreat from the scene.
“Reminder to the public when visiting the zoo that it is against City Ordinance to climb over any fence,” Bridgeton Police stated.
John Medica, Director of Recreation and Public Affairs for the City of Bridgeton, informed People: “The high quality care of the animals, along with the safety of our guests and visitors, is our top priority.
“Any visitor behavior that places the animals, staff and members of the public in a potentially dangerous situation is unacceptable and will be addressed accordingly.”
Authorities are now actively seeking the woman seen in the video.
According to CBS News, zoo officials reported that the same woman attempted similar behavior in a bear exhibit.
However, Medica noted that she was stopped by other park visitors before she could cross the fence.
“This is a unique zoo where you get to go closer than any other zoo that you can get to. But you can’t take liberties with that,” animal keeper Avery Menear told CBS News.
Menear added: “I hurt for these guys because they get really frustrated, as well when this happens. They could seriously hurt someone which again reflects badly on them.”
When asked if the zoo plans to change its operations following the incident, the zoo keeper responded: “I don’t want to make any rash decisions in the moment. We’re going to evaluate everything. We already were.”
Anyone with information about this incident is advised to call Bridgeton Police at 856-451-0033 or send anonymous tips at BPD.TIPS.