Bear fatally shot after escaping Florida zoo exhibit, attacking zookeeper

Zoo staff in Florida fatally shot a bear Wednesday night after it escaped from a exhibit and attacked a zookeeper.

After the escape in a "behind-the-scenes area" took place about 5:10 p.m. at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens, an emergency call was initiated and the zoo's lethal weapons crew responded, the zoo posted on Facebook.

A zoo curator told Jacksonville Sheriff's Office investigators that when he arrived at the habitat he saw the bear “actively attacking” the zookeeper. He said the attack continued as they waited for the veterinarian team to arrive, so he made the “executive decision to move in and shoot the bear,” the police report said.

Jacksonville Fire and Rescue crews took the injured zookeeper to a hospital where they were treated for non life-threatening injuries, FirstCoast News reported. 

The bear was identified as Jonny, a 5-year-old North American black bear, per the Associated Press.

2-year-old boy swallowed by hippo: Man stones animal to save boy's life, police say

Rescued cub is critically ill: Mountain lion cub rescued in California gets new home, name for holidays

"Our highest priority is always the safety of human lives, therefore, the bear was shot and killed," the zoo wrote on Facebook. "We will be conducting an ongoing investigation over the coming days and weeks. We do not take this lightly. It is profoundly painful when we have a loss of an animal, especially under circumstances such as this."

No other details were provided by the zoo about how the bear got out. The zoo did not immediately return a request for comment by Paste BN Thursday.

Contributing: Associated Press

Natalie Neysa Alund covers trending news for Paste BN. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.