The buzz of excitement at the Berlin Zoo was abruptly interrupted by screams of panic and a loud splash as something fell into the moat inside the polar bear enclosure.
To the shock of onlookers, it was the sound of a 32-year-old woman who was now in the exhibit swimming towards the polar bears.
It was a Friday in the spring of 2009, with Easter just a few days away. Locals and tourists alike flocked to the Berlin Zoo. The crowd buzzed with excitement at the sight of the zoo’s main attraction: the family of four polar bears.
It was feeding time and as usual the bears attracted huge crowds as enthusiastic spectators gathered around the enclosure to catch a glimpse of the Arctic animals. However, the predators are so dangerous that even zookeepers do not enter the meadow during this time.
Their fun day out at the zoo would soon take a nightmarish turn after a woman scaled the three-metre high perimeter wall and jumped into the icy water below.
Incredible photos captured the bear pouncing on the woman and biting her neck, as the pain of the predator’s bite was visible on her contorted face
As the woman tries to escape her predicament, one of the bears pulls her back into the water
Visitors on a fun day out at the zoo were soon to take a nightmarish turn after a woman scaled the three-metre high perimeter wall and jumped into the icy water below and swam towards the bears
Visitors were shocked to see that the woman was now heading towards the polar bears who were perched on a rocky island in the center of the enclosure.
The woman would pay a price for her unwise decision.
Although most of the bears were too distracted by their meal, one of the bears spotted the enclosure visitor and walked towards her before jumping towards the woman.
Incredible photos captured the bear pouncing on the woman and biting her neck, with the pain of the predator’s bite visible on her contorted face.
Witnesses, including families with small children, were shocked to see what was happening before their eyes. Many thought they were about to see a person being mauled to death.
Fortunately, before a tragedy could occur, the woman began a frantic rush to escape the enclosure.
At a steep wall separating the bears from the viewing public, she was met by zoo keepers who desperately threw life rings at the woman, while others threw meat and urged the bears to leave the woman alone.
The zookeepers’ heroic efforts and the woman’s panicked escape attempts were captured on video.
To the shock of onlookers, a 32-year-old woman was now in the exhibit and swimming towards the polar bears
Footage shows the 32-year-old repeatedly trying to escape her predicament as she tried to scream at the wall in any way she could
At a sheer wall separating the bears from the viewing public, she was met by zoo keepers who desperately threw life rings at the woman, while others threw meat and urged the bears to leave the woman alone.
Footage shows the 32-year-old repeatedly trying to escape her predicament by climbing the wall in any way possible.
The fear of her predicament seems never ending as she continually slips back into the water as three of the four bears gather around her.
She comes painfully close to being hoisted to safety in a life ring before diving back into the water.
More than once she is pulled out by one of the bears who dives underwater and grabs the victim by her butt as he tries to drag her away.
The woman is eventually brought to safety with the help of a rescue ring, while zookeepers keep the animals at bay by throwing food at them.
Once safely out of the water, peace returns to the enclosure, with the polar bears now surrounded by the rubble of the tumultuous incident that unfolded.
The unnamed woman was rushed to a nearby hospital with wounds to her arms, hips, back and legs, but zookeepers say she was lucky to escape with her life.
The woman is eventually brought to safety with the help of a rescue ring, while zookeepers keep the animals at bay by throwing food at them
The unnamed woman was rushed to a nearby hospital with wounds to her arms, hips, back and legs, but zookeepers say she was lucky to escape with her life.
Zoo biologist Heiner Klos told the German press at the time that the incident could have been ‘even more terrible’.
He added: ‘Our alarm system was working. Otherwise things would have ended badly for the bear.”
The polar bears were not punished for the attack. A police spokesperson said this in 2009 Der Spiegel: ‘The woman jumped in carelessly and should logically expect adult polar bears to do such things.’
This was not the first time a visitor entered the enclosure. In 2008, a 37-year-old man climbed into the enclosure with baby polar bear Knut in his arms. Two-year-old Knut was a global celebrity after becoming the first polar bear in more than 30 years to be born at the zoo and survive infancy.
The man climbed into the paddock because he thought Knut was ‘lonely’. However, before he could get closer to the animal, the zookeepers noticed the intruder and lured Knut into a closed off area with a piece of meat. The man escaped unharmed.
Despite this encroachment on the meadow, the Berlin Zoo has resisted calls to raise the height of the concrete wall surrounding the exhibit.
Instead, the zoo emphasized that those who want to jump in “will always find a way.”