(Adds other recent zoo animal maulings)
NEW YORK, Sept 21 (Reuters) - A tiger critically injured a
man who jumped into the big cat's den at New York City's Bronx
Zoo on Friday, retreating only after emergency workers scared it
off with a fire extinguisher.
The man, 25, was riding the zoo's monorail in the afternoon
and leapt from a car, clearing a fence around the tiger
enclosure, according to a statement from the zoo.
He has been taken to a local hospital and is in critical
condition, the New York City fire department said.
"It looks like he had some very severe wounds on his back or
his torso," said Frank Dwyer, a fire department spokesman. He
said he did not know whether the wounds were caused by teeth or
claws.
"One leg was severely injured," he said, although he could
not confirm early reports that the man lost a foot in the
incident.
In rescuing the man, the zoo's emergency workers used a fire
extinguisher to repel the tiger, then ordered the man to roll
under a hot wire to safety.
"If not for the quick response by our staff and their
ability to perform well in emergency situations, the outcome
would have been very different," the zoo said.
Earlier this year, tigers at a Danish zoo in Copenhagen
killed a man who scaled a fence and crossed a moat to get into
their den in July, and wolves at Sweden's largest zoo killed a
zookeeper in their enclosure in June.
(Reporting by Jonathan Allen; editing by Barbara Goldberg and
Mohammad Zargham)