Greg Toppo

USATODAY

Police in West Palm Beach, Fla., said a longtime zookeeper died Friday afternoon after being mauled by a Malayan tiger, local media reported.

Palm Beach Zoo spokesperson Naki Carter said the tiger was not on exhibit at the time of the attack and did not escape its enclosure.

Officials closed the zoo and evacuated patrons after initially telling them to barricade themselves inside a gift shop as a precaution, WSVN-TV reported.

Zoo officials identified the victim as Stacey Konwiser, 38, and said she had just passed her three-year anniversary at the zoo.

“Stacey was an expert," Carter told reporters. "She dedicated her life to her mission of protecting this species."

Konwiser’s husband is also a zookeeper at the facility.

Carter called Konwiser “the tiger whisperer” because of how well she worked with the site’s four Malayan tigers, the Palm Beach Post reported.

“When you go into this profession as a keeper, you go because you have a passion. That passion is animals and endangered species.”

Top zoo officials told the Post that Konwiser sustained a “severe bite” wound.

The death was the first at the hands of an animal in the history of zoo, Carter said.

Police said they tranquilized the tiger but had to wait for the drugs to take effect to safely treat Konwiser, who was transported to St. Mary's Medical Center.

Police said the attack took place just before 1:45 p.m., inside a contained area where the tigers sleep, WTSP reported.

The tigers are considered endangered, according to the World Wildlife Fund, which puts their total population at between 250 and 340 animals.

Outside of zoos, the group says, Malayan tigers are found only on the Malay Peninsula and in the southern tip of Thailand.

Officials said the zoo will be shut down through Saturday, with grief counselors arriving Friday to speak to staff.

Florida Fish and Wildlife officials said they planned to investigate. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration was also scheduled to visit the zoo.

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