CCTV footage shows 5 lions escaping Sydney zoo enclosure

New CCTV footage reveals how five lions at a Sydney zoo were able to escape their enclosure by squeezing underneath a fence.

Taronga Zoo has shared CCTV footage of what is being called the great lion escape of 2022. The zoo said that lion cubs Luzuko, Zuri, Khari and Malika were playing near the fence of their enclosure before one of the cubs squeezed underneath it to venture outside. The other three cubs soon followed. Adult male lion Ato, their father, was the last to exit.

The lions were found outside their enclosure at 6.30 am on November 2.

“The five lions calmly investigated within metres of their main exhibit, before actively trying to find their way back under the fence as lioness Maya and keepers began calling for them,” the zoo said in a statement.

The big cats made several attempts to re-enter their enclosure and male cub Luzuko was the first to successfully do so. Zuri and Khair followed him back inside, but Malika had to be transquilised and transported to the enclosure. “With encouragement from keepers, Ato returned to the exhibit before making his way into the dens to be reunited with his pride,” the zoo said.

Taronga Zoo is managed by the Zoological Parks Board of New South Wales. The facility said it is investigating the failure of its mesh fencing system. In an earlier statement, it had explained that the lions were able to create a gap and squeeze past the fence because the failure of swages or clamps that join wire cables together enabled a lacing cable that connects the fence mesh to a tension cable to unravel.