Tiger rips woman's arm off
2005-11-11 15:20
Lisbon - A circus tiger tore off a woman's arm when she put her hand into its cage to stroke it, a newspaper reported on Friday.
The 24-year-old Romanian woman worked at the Circo Atlas circus but was off-duty when the attack occurred near Lisbon on Thursday, Jornal de Noticias reported, quoting circus staff.
Employees used a fire extinguisher to ward off the tiger and retrieve the arm which they placed in ice while awaiting the arrival of emergency services, the report said.
An official at Lisbon's Sao Jose Hospital confirmed a woman was admitted for surgery after what was said to have been a tiger attack but said doctors were unable to reattach her arm. She was said to be in stable condition.
The hospital official said she had no details of the attack. It was not immediately possible to contact the Circo Atlas.
- AP