07 June,2014 03:03 AM IST | | Agencies
It turns out that the 35-year-old who was shot by a tranquilliser gun in Loro Parque zoo in Tenerife ‘was not in a gorilla suit’, officials say
Gorilla
Tenerife: Initial reports had suggested the zookeeper was wearing a gorilla suit, which is why the vet had mistaken him.
Representation pic/Thinkstock
But later officials at the Loro Parque, on the island of Tenerife denied that the 35-year-old keeper had been wearing the suit at all and that the âshooting' had taken place during a routine drill.
The zookeeper was rushed to hospital and he has now fully recovered after being given the immediate antidote to the dart.
Patricia Delponti, a spokesman from Loro Parque said: "The incident took place just after the vet had been informed that the alarm had been raised for a practice drill and not a real emergency.
"He did not mean to hit the zookeeper and the zookeeper was not pretending to be a gorilla. He was wearing a normal uniform and had just informed the vet that it was a practice drill. It was simply an accident."
Delponti added: "Obviously he was sleeping a lot after being shot with a tranquilliser meant for a 200kg gorilla but he is now already back to work."
