The Siberian tiger that fatally mauled a visitor at a British wildlife park over the weekend will not be euthanized, authorities said Sunday.
Altai, a young male Siberian tiger, was filmed biting and clawing the man’s back after the visitor entered the big cat’s enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park in northern England on Saturday afternoon.
The unidentified visitor is believed to have jumped from a viewing platform after asking a stranger to photograph him with the 420-pound tiger.
Altai dragged the man away before rangers fired two warning shots from a shotgun, prompting the tiger to retreat into his pen.
“We would like to thank everyone who has expressed their concern following yesterday’s tragic incident,” Yorkshire Wildlife Park said in a statement Sunday, according to BBC News.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies remain with the family and loved ones of the man who sadly lost his life.
“Many, many people have contacted us about Altai, the tiger. We can reassure everyone that he is safe and well and will not be euthanised as a result of this incident,” the wildlife reserve said.
Yorkshire Wildlife Park remained closed Sunday following the visitor’s death.
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Altai is one of two Siberian tigers at the park. He was brought there to mate with a female Siberian tiger named Tschuna.
The two big cats live in a two-acre enclosure featuring woodland and a waterfall pool. The area is enclosed by a 16-foot fence.
A viewing platform at one corner of the enclosure is separated from the animals by a three-foot “stand-off” fence, which investigators believe the man climbed over.
Authorities have not given a reason for why the visitor entered the tiger enclosure.
Visitors told the Daily Mail that he appeared to be dancing while wearing AirPods and “psyching himself up” before going inside.
“I tried to stop him,” a woman can be heard saying in the background of video recorded moments before Altai killed the man.
One witness said the man posed for photographs and took pictures of the tigers shortly before the attack.
The video shows the man pointing toward the tiger as if reprimanding it. Some social media users speculated that he may have been making the Makaton gesture for “bad.” Makaton is a communication system similar to British Sign Language and is often used by people with communication difficulties.
“Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene,” South Yorkshire Police said in a statement Saturday.
Black screens were installed along the visitors’ path to shield people from the gruesome scene inside the enclosure. An air ambulance was also seen circling the park before landing nearby.
The incident has gathered international attention, with even infamous big-cat owner and star of Netflix’s “Tiger King” Carole Baskin weighing in on what happened, insisting the animal “was not doing anything wrong” when it fatally mauled the man.
