March 30 (UPI) — An Albuquerque zoo delayed its opening when an Asian elephant was found to have escaped her enclosure and made her way to a public walkway.
Brandon Gibson, the executive director of ABQ BioPark, said zoo staff found Alice, a 52-year-old Asian elephant, on a public walkway outside her habitat at about 7:30 a.m. Sunday.
“She was able to breach a section of stationary steel. She was able to kind of push against it and break the welds. We’re still reviewing our security footage on that, but that’s how she breached her habitat,” Gibson told KRQE-TV.
Emergency protocols were activated and zoo staff were able to wrangle Alice without further incident. The elephant was examined by veterinary staff before being returned to an enclosure with her daughter, Rosie.
Gibson said the zoo is now working to repair and reinforce the fence. He said the work is expected to take about two days.
The escape delayed the zoo’s opening by about 30 minutes on Sunday. The elephant enclosure will remain closed to the public until the repairs are completed.
