Rescuers have evacuating exhausted and starving animals which became been trapped for days at a flooded zoo in the Russian city of Ussuriysk.

So far a lion and three bears have been airlifted to safety, while many animals confined to their cages are yet to be rescued.

Two bears were drowned. According to the Emergencies Ministry at least 10 bears and three volkosoby (a wolf/dog cross) are yet to be lifted from their waterlogged surroundings at “Green Island” animal park.

Exhausted from spending three days in floods, the caged wild animals which survived the overflow of the river Rakovka may pose a threat during the evacuation process, veterinarians and animal activists have warned.