A tranquil night at a petting zoo in rural South Carolina ended in tragedy when a man was fatally attacked by a kangaroo after he entered its pen.

Eric Slate, aged 52, was discovered deceased shortly after midnight early Saturday, suffering from ‘multiple blunt force injuries’ in an enclosed space housing kangaroos and wallabies at 5 Star Farm, as reported by the Horry County Police Department.

Although the precise cause of death is awaiting autopsy confirmation, Horry County councilman Dennis DiSabato verified that a kangaroo played a role in the deadly incident, according to a report by Fox 8 News.

It was unclear on Saturday what exactly the man was doing inside the enclosure. 

Authorities emphasized that all animals on the property have been accounted for and secured, assuring the public there is no ongoing threat.

Robert Slate, Eric’s relative and the owner of 5 Star Farms, issued a brief statement asking for privacy and assuring the public that none of the animals escaped their enclosure, WPDE News reported.

The tragic and highly unusual case is still under active investigation, with police promising to release more details once the autopsy results are in.

Saturday’s horrific incident isn’t the first time wildlife enthusiasts around the world have found themselves in fatal encounters with their favorite animals, even in seemingly safe and controlled environments.

Feral instincts still remain present in a number of these caged beasts, where even the glass screening and metal fencing can not contain their primal urges.

While some incidents have taken place in the privacy of the animal’s enclosure, several beasts have unleashed their fury in front of horrified children outside of their protective barriers as they bring their victims to the brink of death.

In one case, a man in Thailand was mauled by a tormented bear as it pulled him into its cage and began gnawing off chunks of his flesh.

Eight years ago, a Chinese woman was snatched by a ravenous tiger after stepping out of her car at a safari park near the Great Wall of China. 

In 2017, a young Chinese man was killed by a tiger un front of his horrified wife and child after getting dragged into its zoo enclosure.

The incident occurred at the Youngor Wildlife Park in the city of Ningbo, about 125 miles south of Shanghai.

An onlooker took footage of the tiger dragging the man under some trees and sinking its teeth into his neck as two other big cats lurked behind.

Zoo visitors raised the alarm soon after he was attacked by the predator but it took zoo staff about an hour to grapple the man from the tiger’s firm grip, according to reports from the time.

The tigers were eventually driven away by firecrackers and a water canon, said a report in the Beijing Youth Daily, which added that the man was rushed to the hospital but tragically died shortly after.

One tiger in the enclosure was shot dead by local forestry bureau staff.

A horrified witness said the tiger wouldn’t allow the man to escape: ‘I saw the tiger mauling the person, whose face was covered with blood. Every time he sat up, the tiger pushed him down again.’

The reports said it was not clear how or why the man, whose wife and child had come to the park with him, had gotten into the tiger enclosure.

In June of 2023, a furious hippo started charging at its zookeeper after he tried to break up its tight with another territorial bull inside their enclosure.

Heart-stopping footage showed the man – who had entered the enclosure to feed the animal – scrambling out of the pen in a desperate bid to avoid a fatal attack at the Changsha Ecological Zoo in China’s Hunan province.

Amid the rush to run for his life, the zoo keeper slipped over the wet concrete surface entrance with the hippo ready to launch what could have been a devastating assault. 

With the furious hippo caring its huge teeth in a threatening display, the man used his arms and feet to prevent the hungry animal from closing in on him.

The hippo momentarily left its keeper alone as it continued to feed on greens but as the man stood back up, it charged at him again just as he was leaving the enclosure. This time, however, he was able to run to safety. 

It was understood the zoo keeper had entered the enclosure to feed the animal before two hippos began attacking each other.

Footage showed the territorial bulls going at each other before the zoo keeper flew out of the pen. 

The zoo keeper had tried to break up the fight by distracting one of the hippos, but was sent running when they turned their fury on him.

Astonishingly, the zookeeper escaped unharmed following the horror clash on Sunday, September 24.