Queensland zoo to reopen two days after woman loses arm to lioness
Queensland's health minister, Tim Nicholls, confirmed that the woman, who is in her 50s, had 'lost her arm' in the attack, which took place at about 8.32am on Sunday at the Darling Downs zoo, south of Toowoomba.
'I got a report this morning, so she has had surgery, and she is recovering well in the PA [Princess Alexandra] hospital,' Nicholls said on Monday morning.
'And unfortunately, she has lost her arm.'
She was in a stable condition in hospital on Monday evening.
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In a Facebook post on Monday afternoon, Darling Downs zoo said the victim was 'not an employee, a keeper or a zoo visitor', but 'a much-loved member of the zoo owners' family'. In a post on Sunday, they said the woman had been 'watching keepers working in the carnivore precinct', something they said she had 'done many, many times over the past 20 years'.
'It has still not been possible to interview her to establish what led to this tragic incident,' the zoo wrote in the Monday post, adding that there was no plan for the animal to be put down.
'We can confirm that she was attacked by a lioness. She was not in its enclosure.'
The zoo emphasised in the post that the animal 'was not hungry, skinny, taunted or tortured'.
'A full investigation has been carried out by Workplace Health and Safety Queensland,' they went on.
'As a result the Darling Downs zoo will reopen at 9am tomorrow [Tuesday] morning.'
A spokesperson from Workplace Health and Safety Queensland said on Monday evening that the incident was 'still an ongoing and active WHSQ investigation'.
'WHSQ inspectors have issued a number of compliance notices to the business to ensure compliance with WHS legislation.'
In a Facebook post published on Sunday, the zoo had previously said the animal did not leave its enclosure during the attack and 'there was no risk at all to staff members or members of the public'.
The zoo did not respond to questions on Monday afternoon as to whether additional steps had been taken to improve safety at the facility.
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Darling Downs zoo turns 20 this year.
In a Facebook post published on Sunday, the zoo said the animal did not leave its enclosure during the attack and 'there was no risk at all to staff members or members of the public'.
The zoo plans to reopen at the normal time of 9am tomorrow. It did not respond to questions about what steps had been taken to improve safety at the facility.
A spokesperson from Workplace Health and Safety Queensland said the organisation is continuing its investigation into the incident. It did not confirm whether it had approved the reopening plans.
Nationals leader and Queensland MP David Littleproud said on Monday that the attack was a 'tragic incident' but that Darling Downs zoo had operated safely for 'many, many years'.
'We need to understand and appreciate the circumstances that led to this before we make any judgment and allow that to happen in the right environment,' he said.
Littleproud encouraged locals to continue to visit the zoo, 'which will need support from the community during this difficult time'.
'As someone that's a local to that part of the world, it's shocked much of the community, and it's a very important economic part of our part of Queensland. So our thoughts are with them and the zoo today.'
It is not the first big cat attack at a Queensland site in recent months. Dreamworld reportedly ended human interaction with its tigers after an attack on a handler in September 2024.
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