Diana Lewes is facing backlash after claiming she climbed into an animal enclosure at an Australian zoo to retrieve her children’s hats.
Lewes visited Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, and later documented the trip in a now-deleted Instagram post titled “The Great Taronga Zoo Hat Incident.” According to the post, another parkgoer who was also a mother scolded Lewes after her son threw his cap, narrowly missing a stroller. Her daughter then allegedly threw her hat as well, which struck the pram’s wheel. The other mother responded by throwing both caps into an animal enclosure.
“What animal? No idea. Was I supposed to be in there? Absolutely not. Did I climb the fence anyway? Unfortunately, yes,” Lewes allegedly wrote in the Instagram post.
“I calmly walked into an enclosure containing God knows what, collected two hats, and walked back out like this was a perfectly normal Thursday afternoon.”
However, many social media users were left unimpressed with her story, noting the potential dangers. One comment on the deleted post read: “So your kids could have lost their mother for a couple of hats.”
Another commenter referenced a fatal tiger attack that had occurred earlier this month at Yorkshire Wildlife Park in England. “After the man getting mauled by a tiger, you didn’t think about approaching a staff member to retrieve the hats?” the comment read.
“Idk I wouldn’t be showing my kid it’s okay to just go into a wild animals space… Definitely wouldn’t be proud of this.”
The earlier incident involved William Chapman, who was attacked after entering Yorkshire Wildlife Park’s tiger enclosure, which houses Amur tiger Altai, on October 10. Emergency responders rushed to the scene shortly after 1:30 p.m. BST, but despite their efforts, he was pronounced dead at the scene. On October 11, the park confirmed that the tiger would not be euthanized following the incident.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies remain with the family and loved ones of the man who tragically lost his life,” the park said in a statement.
“Many people have contacted us about Altai, the tiger,” it continued. “We can reassure everyone that he is safe and well and will not be euthanised as a result of this incident.”
A full inquest into Chapman’s death will take place on March 16 next year.