Plan B Forum

Animals roam streets of Tbilisi after flooding kills 8, frees zoo animals

(CNN)Wild animals roamed the streets of Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, on Sunday, after raging floodwaters damaged the city's zoo and set many of the animals free.

Eight people were killed by the flooding, several others were missing, and wolves, bears, big cats and even a hippopotamus were wandering the streets of the city, according to Civil.ge, a news agency funded by the EU and the UN.

Of the zoo's 600 residents, including fish and birds, about half were missing on Sunday, theTbilisi Zoo said.

Some animals have been recaptured, Civil.ge reported. Others have been killed.

But some animals were still on the lam.

Video from the city shows what appears to be a crocodile slithering down the city streets, as well as a hippopotamus standing around looking confused.

Also among the escapees were lions, tigers, bears and wolves, the agency reported. Georgia's Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili asked residents to stay home while the animals are rounded up.

Tbilisi Zoo spokeswoman Mzia Sharashidze told InterPressNews agency that three bodies had been found in the zoo, including those of two employees.

Ms Sharashidze said wolves, lions, tigers, jackals and jaguars had been shot dead by special forces or were missing.

Floodwater rose to the rooftops of enclosures at the zoo, drowning hundreds of animals. Many animals were swept out of their enclosures and escaped.

A bear was found clinging to an air-conditioning unit half way up one building, while a man discovered a hyena on his balcony.


The Ministry of Internal Affairs also urged everyone to stay indoors but said in a statement that the situation was "under full control."

All efforts are being made to find the animals quickly, "give them injections," and get them back into the zoo, the ministry said.