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The tale of Tilikum - This one’s for the history books. In 2010, a killer whale named Tilikum shocked the world when he attacked a whale instructor at SeaWorld Orlando.

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The tale of Tilikum -

Dawn Brancheau turned away from Tilikum during a performance, and the animal pulled her by the ponytail, dragging her underwater and killing her. Tilikum had previously been involved in the deaths of two others (in 1992 and 1999). (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 2.0)

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Harambe - Here’s another historical zoo attack. Back in 2016 at the Cincinnati Zoo, a gorilla named Harambe made headlines worldwide after a child climbed into his enclosure.

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Harambe - Harambe grabbed the boy, and dragged him around the enclosure. A zookeeper shot the gorilla, killing him. To this day, there is a lot of controversy as to whether the killing was justified.

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Killed in the water - In 2012, disaster struck Copenhagen Zoo. A 21-year-old man was killed after entering the Siberian tiger den. “He was killed in the water,” a police spokesman told the Associated Press.

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Attacked by wolves -

Patricia Wyman was a new hire when she was attacked at a wildlife reserve in Ontario, Canada in 1996. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 3.0)

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Attacked by wolves - Wyman was taking care of five gray wolves, who eventually turned on her and killed her. There were no witnesses, but some say she tripped, triggering a predatory instinct from the wolves.

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Can't bear it - In 2009, a woman hopped the fence at Berlin Zoo, coming face-to-face with a polar bear.

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Can't bear it - The animal got a few bites of her back, before she was rescued by zookeepers.

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A cleaner is killed - Back in 2008, a tragedy occurred at Singapore Zoo. Three white Bengal tigers attacked a zoo cleaner, mauling him to death in their enclosure.

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A cleaner is killed - Nordin Montong was 32 years old when he died, after climbing a low wall and walking through a moat in the enclosure.

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Unchained melody -

Tapirs aren’t typically known to be violent, but Melody defied expectations at Oklahoma Zoo in 1998.

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Unchained melody - Melody was being fed by zookeeper Lisa Morehead. The animal apparently bit her arm, eventually tearing it off. Yikes.

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An unexpected threat -

In 2012 at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, a two-year-old elephant proved to be an unexpected threat. The animal pinned a trainer to a wall with its trunk, but the woman made it out alive.

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A tiger escapes - On December 25, 2007, a Siberian tiger named Tatiana escaped its enclosure at San Francisco Zoo. The animal attacked three men, with one casualty.

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A tiger escapes -

As a result, the zoo updated its tiger enclosures. Hot wire lines were also installed into the enclosure, as reported by SFGate. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY 2.0)

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Binky - In July 1994 at the Alaska Zoo,
an Australian tourist had a brush with death after she snuck into the polar bear enclosure. Kathryn Warburton got out alive, but Binky the polar bear kept one of her shoes as a trophy.

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Don't leave the vehicle - In 2016, a woman by the name of Ms Zhao was attacked at an animal park near Beijing. She drove into the tiger enclosure, left her car, and met a gruesome fate.

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Gu Gu - Beijing Zoo is home to Gu Gu, a giant panda who has gotten pretty violent over the years.

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Gu Gu - The panda has reportedly attacked three people, including a drunk man in 2006 and a 15-year-old in 2007.

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Mila the elephant - Mila was an elephant who spent three decades in the circus before joining Franklin Zoo in New Zealand.

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Mila the elephant - Zoo owner Helen Schofield apparently wanted to transfer Mila to a sanctuary in California. However, she didn’t get the chance, as Mila killed Schofield with her trunk in 2012.

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Jabari the gorilla - Disaster struck the Dallas Zoo in 2004, after a lowland gorilla was apparently taunted by some visitors.

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Jabari the gorilla - Jabari the gorilla scaled the concave walls, and started to cause mayhem. Everyone survived but Jabari, who was gunned down by SWAT.

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The violent lioness - In Johannesburg, a zoo worker came out of retirement to help out with lions like Nyanga.

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The violent lioness - But Nyanga, a lioness, didn’t take to Joe Ramonetha kindly. In 2012, she bit through his neck, killing him. After that, the lioness was sent to a sanctuary.

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Young victim - Pittsburgh Zoo saw a tragedy in 2012, when two-year-old Maddox Derkosh fell into a wild dog enclosure.

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Young victim - The boy didn’t survive, and the autopsy revealed that he was killed by the animal attack.

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Zanesville - By far the most gruesome entry here, be advised this story has some sensitive details. Terry Thomspon was a Vietnam war veteran who built up his own zoo in Zanesville, Ohio.

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Zanesville -

One day in October 2011, Thompson freed dozens of the animals, including lions, tigers, grizzly bears, and monkeys, into the wild. He committed suicide, and the exotic animals were successfully hunted down by law enforcement.

See also: Facts about big cats and wild cats that will amaze you.

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