This incident actually happened last year, but it seems to have gone viral now, so I guess we'll share it now! In a potentially disastrous event, two keepers at the Fort Worth Zoo were out prepping the gorilla yard, when their adult male gorilla, Elmo, turned out to still be in the enclosure. Fortunately, the keepers both were able to make a break for it and get out unharmed, while Elmo was preoccupied with food. The event happened while the zoo was open and was filmed by visitors, who were heard commenting as it played out. Their video footage can be found here.
I've been a similar situation years ago (a bear, not a gorilla... but not sure if that's better or worse), so I can imagine how scared those keepers must have been. I likewise had a newer keeper let a clouded leopard in on me by mistake (I'm being charitable in assuming it was a mistake). It's good that the keepers were able to stay as calm as you can be when dashing for your life and took advantage of their chance to get out.
Keeper error always sounds like such a judgy term, but the fact is that 99% of all potentially dangerous incidents in which keepers and animals come into contact are caused by mistakes on the part of the former. Thankfully everyone here is safe and well, and hopefully it was a learning experience for everyone. Except maybe Elmo. He seems to know what's going on.
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