*The gorilla story is still making news. In the midst of authorities investigating various aspects of the incident that involved a 4-yr-old boy falling into the enclosure of a 17-yr-old silver-back gorilla named Harambe – who ended up being shot and killed last Saturday (05-28-16) – the audio of the 911 call has been released.
“My son fell in with the gorilla,” Michelle Gregg, the mother of the child who fell in the exhibit told the 911 dispatcher. “There’s a male gorilla standing over him. I need someone to contact the police.”
But Michelle Gregg wasn’t the only person to call 911, as did other onlookers.
“There is a baby in the zoo that fell in the gorilla moat. Hurry! The gorillas are out,” said one caller.
“Hi, we’re at the Cincinnati Zoo a baby fell in the gorilla cage and everyone is screaming,” another said.
WATCH/LISTEN:
As we alluded up top, authorities from various agencies are involved in various investigations involving the incident (including the parents) to hopefully find out just how the incident came about from all points of view. Here’s what CNN is reporting:
Cincinnati police said Tuesday that their review “is only regarding the actions of the parents/family that led up to the incident and not related to the operation or safety of the Cincinnati Zoo.”
“After the review, we will determine if charges need to be brought forward,” police spokeswoman Tiffaney Hardy said. “If it is determined charges need to be brought forward, we would then discuss it with the Hamilton County prosecutor’s office.”
Authorities have said the boy’s mother was with the child at the time he slipped past a fence and tumbled into the moat.
Julie Wilson, spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office, declined to say how long the investigation might take.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums, an accrediting agency, also announced that it was investigating the Harambe episode. “We’ll of course be taking a closer look at that working with Cincinnati to figure out what happened and make sure we can firm that up so it doesn’t happen again,” said to Rob Vernon, spokesman for the AZA.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which inspects the zoo annually, said it will determine whether the incident happened because the zoo was not in compliance with the Animal Welfare Act , according to Public Affairs Specialist Tanya Espinosa.
If not, that would warrant a formal investigation, Espinosa said. And we couldn’t agree more. In any event, you can read MORE at CNN.
