The escape of 9 wolves causes the temporary closure of a zoo in France

French authorities in the south of the country temporarily closed a zoo after nine wolves escaped from their enclosures during visiting hours, officials announced Friday.

Local official Fabien Cholet told AFP that no one was harmed in the incident, which occurred last weekend at the Trois Valley Zoo in Monredon-L’Bessonne in the Tarn region, but four of the wolves were shot dead by zoo workers and five others were drugged by local officials in the scene of the accident.

"There weren't many people in the zoo at the time, and the people present weren't at any point in danger," Cholet added.

He pointed out that the "security problem" that was recorded necessitated the closure of the park until the situation is corrected.

The zoo's owner, Suvor Ferrara, told AFP that the wolves, who had recently arrived in the park, fled after destroying security installations, but they never went outside the park.

He added that "due to the abnormal and dangerous behavior of some of them, the park members were forced to kill four wolves," stressing that the site's visitors were immediately removed from the place.

In October 2020, the park faced a closure order due to security measures, but the court later lifted this order.

Its social media page said it plans to reopen now in mid-January.

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