A young woman has died after being mauled by a tiger at a safari park in Rancagua, Chile. The incident occurred while she was performing maintenance work and failed to notice that the animal's cage door was left open.
The victim, who has not been publicly named, entered the enclosure where the tiger was kept when it is not roaming freely in the park. The tiger immediately attacked, biting her neck and causing her death almost instantly, according to local police.
Williams Espinoza of the Rancagua police stated: 'She did not realise that the door of the animal's cage was open and was immediately attacked by this tiger, causing her death on the spot.' The safari park was closed as police investigated the scene.
Jorge Mena from the regional public prosecutor's office confirmed that an investigation is underway to determine whether any third party may be held responsible for the tragedy.
The incident follows a similar fatal attack in South Africa, where a zookeeper was killed by a Siberian tiger after an electric fence was switched off for repairs.
