Two bears ESCAPE at UK zoo with visitors locked down and cops scrambled as bosses probe how they got out
TWO escaped bears channelled Winnie-the-Pooh — and made a beeline for the zoo's honey store.
Mish and Lucy, both 5ft and 30st, were caught on CCTV nosing through supplies before guzzling a week's worth of the sweet sticky treat.
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Visitors were ushered into secure buildings and the satisfied five-year-olds wandered back to their £100,000 enclosure for a nap.
Mark Habben, director of zoo operations at Wildwood Devon, in Escot Park, near Exeter, told The Sun: 'We'd had a huge food delivery an hour before.
'It was still in boxes and they made their way straight to it.
'They tore into containers and also smashed a jar of peanut butter.'
Police headed to the scene while staff monitored the European brown bears but a zoo spokeswoman added: 'Mish and Lucy posed no threat.
'They enjoyed a selection of snacks — including the honey — before being safely returned to their enclosure by the keeper team within the hour.
'Then they fell asleep.'
The siblings arrived at the zoo in 2022 after they were found as cubs in 2019, abandoned by their mother in the mountains of Albania.
It was deemed too dangerous for them to be returned and they were kept briefly in Belgium.
I work at London Zoo and my day even includes making Tea for the animals
Wildwood said at the time it wanted an enclosure that was as natural as possible and launched an appeal for funds.
The pair soon settled in and became firm favourites with its visitors.
Mr Habben said: 'We are investigating how they got out — but we suspect they've gone through an unlocked gate.
'We've managed bears for 21 years and never had an incident like this.
'Mish and Lucy are going to be on a restricted diet.
'It's only the bear necessities from now on.'
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The Sun
9 hours ago
- The Sun
Two bears ESCAPE at UK zoo with visitors locked down and cops scrambled as bosses probe how they got out
TWO escaped bears channelled Winnie-the-Pooh — and made a beeline for the zoo's honey store. Mish and Lucy, both 5ft and 30st, were caught on CCTV nosing through supplies before guzzling a week's worth of the sweet sticky treat. 5 5 5 5 Visitors were ushered into secure buildings and the satisfied five-year-olds wandered back to their £100,000 enclosure for a nap. Mark Habben, director of zoo operations at Wildwood Devon, in Escot Park, near Exeter, told The Sun: 'We'd had a huge food delivery an hour before. 'It was still in boxes and they made their way straight to it. 'They tore into containers and also smashed a jar of peanut butter.' Police headed to the scene while staff monitored the European brown bears but a zoo spokeswoman added: 'Mish and Lucy posed no threat. 'They enjoyed a selection of snacks — including the honey — before being safely returned to their enclosure by the keeper team within the hour. 'Then they fell asleep.' The siblings arrived at the zoo in 2022 after they were found as cubs in 2019, abandoned by their mother in the mountains of Albania. It was deemed too dangerous for them to be returned and they were kept briefly in Belgium. I work at London Zoo and my day even includes making Tea for the animals Wildwood said at the time it wanted an enclosure that was as natural as possible and launched an appeal for funds. The pair soon settled in and became firm favourites with its visitors. Mr Habben said: 'We are investigating how they got out — but we suspect they've gone through an unlocked gate. 'We've managed bears for 21 years and never had an incident like this. 'Mish and Lucy are going to be on a restricted diet. 'It's only the bear necessities from now on.' 5
BBC News
11 hours ago
- BBC News
Bears raid honey store after enclosure escape
Two bears who sparked the evacuation of a wildlife park involving trained firearms staff and police had headed straight for the honey store, the park has said. Wildwood Devon, a conservation charity near Exeter, said European brown bears Mish and Lucy made their way to the food store after breaking free - and then consumed a "week's worth of honey". The park was evacuated after the alarm was raised at about 15:00 BST on Monday - 16 people including children were locked into a play barn for their safety. Mark Habben, director of zoological operations at Wildwood Trust, said emergency procedures were deployed and the public was "not in harm's way". Wildwood Devon The trust has now launched an investigation into how the pair of "young bears", weighing about 180kg (397lb) each, escaped as there were no signs of enclosure damage, it said. Mr Habben said: "Both bears are extremely happy. The team were very, very calm, as were the bears at all points. "The public were not in harm's way, emergency procedures and everyone did the job they were intended to do." Mr Habben said a "code red" was called after the bears were spotted by senior staff after they "breached" the enclosure and made their way to a staff area at about 15:00 BST on Monday. He said: "They were in an area where we keep enrichment - all the nice things. "The bears had a feast, played around, pulled some rope out." Wildwood Trust He said the code red is a "category one emergency procedure" which leads to park evacuation and lock down. He said the park's emergency team was deployed, including those trained in firearms, while police were notified and arrived on site to "support the team on the ground". Mr Habben said staff monitored the bears on CCTV and they "remained very calm throughout", not breaching any public areas, choosing instead to remain at the back of the bear house. "They were wandering up and down, having a sniff around, looking in the store cupboard where honey was stored. "That was fortuitously left open, so they raided that." Jon Forde, head of bears at Wildwood Trust, said he was "very surprised" by the incident. He said: "We work very hard to make sure these things don't happen. "We've been looking after bears for the last decade and never had an escape before so it's not a common thing or something we ever want to ever happen again." However, Mr Forde said he was not surprised by what the bears got up to. He said: "Bears are very typical. They'll go for the nearest sort of sweet source of food - any honey, peanut butter, jam, anything like that they absolutely love. "They've got this great sense of smell, they'll just find things out, even if you hide them. They'll find them out and they'll make sure they have them." Mish eventually made her own way back to the enclosure and Lucy was lured back with a bell and her favourite foods. He described the pair, who were rescued from a snow drift in Albania in 2019, as "extremely charismatic and resilient". The trust said it had built a reputation for working with European brown bears. Mr Habben said this was the first time an escape incident had taken place at the park and an investigation was now under way as to how the breach occurred. Another brown bear that was set to be killed in Sweden and travelled to England by Eurotunnel, was resident at the trust before being transferred to a park in Ipswich. Wildwood Devon On social media, Wildwood Devon added: "The exhibit is secure, and we are grateful to our staff and visitors for their cooperation, which helped us resolve the situation swiftly and safely." The park opened as usual earlier. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, European brown bears can grow up to 6.5ft (1.9m) and weigh up to 1,500lbs (680kg), are able to stand on two legs and communicate through scratch marks on trees. Some of the largest living carnivores, brown bears have fallen prey to hunting and other conflicts with humans and there are thought to be up to 110,000 in the world. Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@ Related internet links Wildwood Trust Bears Wildlife Devon Animals
The Independent
13 hours ago
- The Independent
Bears escape enclosure at UK wildlife park and eat week's worth of honey
Two young bears at a wildlife park made a beeline for a week's supply of honey after staging an escape from their enclosure. Mish and Lucy, both four-year-old siblings, seized their moment of freedom at the Wildwood Trust's site in Ottery St Mary in Devon on Monday afternoon. The pair reportedly headed straight for their food store during their hour-long adventure. Despite their brief escapade, Wildwood Devon confirmed that the bears posed no danger to the public at any point. A spokesperson for Wildwood Trust shared: 'Two young bears escaped from their enclosure at Wildwood Devon this afternoon, heading straight for their food store. 'Mish and Lucy, both four years, who posed no threat to the public at any point, enjoyed a selection of snacks – including a week's worth of honey – before being safely returned to their enclosure by the expert keeper team within the hour. 'As a precaution, all visitors on site were promptly escorted to a secure building. 'The bears were continuously monitored both on the ground and via CCTV until they calmly returned to their enclosure and fell asleep.' The charity said police attended the scene 'in line with standard protocol' and an investigation is underway to find out how the bears escaped. 'The exhibit is secure, and we are grateful to our staff and visitors for their cooperation, which helped us resolve the situation swiftly and safely,' the spokesperson added. Mish and Lucy were discovered abandoned by their mother in a snowdrift in the Albanian mountains, according to the Wildwood Trust. Several attempts were made to reintroduce the cubs into the wild but it became clear to conservationists that they could not survive on their own. Following a fundraising campaign in 2020, the siblings were transported to Wildwood's Kent park for six months before they made their 'forever home' at the Devon site in 2021. Mish is known to be a playful bear who enjoys splashing around in the pool and swinging in hammocks while Lucy is said to 'love nothing more' than spending time with her brother and climbing trees. The pair eat kilos of berries, fruits, vegetables, seeds, fish and meat every day.
