Lion escapes wildlife park, injures local man
ANTALYA
A lion escaped from a private animal park in the southern province of Antalya on early July 6, injuring a man working nearby before killing by hunters.
The male lion, named "Zeus," broke out of its cage at a wildlife facility near a highway in the city’s Manavgat district.
Süleyman Kır, who was working in a field about 1 kilometer from the park, was attacked and injured by the lion.
He was swiftly taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Local police and gendarmerie teams quickly cordoned off the area, closing access to ensure public safety.
Authorities launched efforts to locate and capture the animal.
After the lion’s location was determined in a nearby forest, hunters shot and killed the animal with rifles to prevent further danger.
Manavgat District Governor Adil Karataş told the press that the circumstances of the escape remain unclear.
Meanwhile, a local resident, Bilal Faruk Zeybek, captured footage of the lion on his phone.
Zeybek said he heard sirens around 3:30 a.m. on July 6 and saw police searching the area.
“They told us not to go outside,” he said. “I spotted the lion lying in the grass, lifting its head. I recorded it but I was terrified.”
The park reportedly houses around 30 lions.
This is not the first time a lion has escaped captivity and caused panic in Türkiye.
In 2021, a lion at the Gaziantep Zoo injured three people, including a caretaker, before it was killed by authorities.
A year later, another lion caused panic in Ankara’s Gölbaşı district after escaping from a closed-down zoo.
