Deadly zoo animals roam Georgian capital after floods kill 9 people
Residents were advised to stay indoors until the animals could be captured
Tbilisi: Lions, tigers, bears and other wild animals escaped from a zoo in the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Sunday, adding to chaos caused by flooding that killed at least eight people, officials said.
Police and soldiers were hunting down the animals, recapturing some and shooting others dead, while rescuers airlifted scores of people trapped by the floods.
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili called on Tbilisi residents to stay indoors while the animals were still on the loose, describing the damage to the city's infrastructure as "substantial" after the River Vere burst its banks after hours of torrential rain.
"So far, the confirmed death toll is eight people, but several people are still missing," said Nino Giorgobiani, the interior ministry spokeswoman.
The floods turned the streets and squares into raging streams, sweeping away cars and flooding houses in the ex-Soviet state.
Tbilisi Zoo spokeswoman Mzia Sharashidze told the InterPressNews agency that three dead bodies had been found on the grounds of the zoo, including two employees.
"Search for animals continues, but a large part of the zoo is simply non-existent. It was turned into a hellish whirlpool," she said.
"Some 20 wolves, eight lions, white tigers, tigers, jackals, jaguars have either been shot dead by special forces or are missing. Only three out of our 17 penguins were saved," she added.
Pictures circulating on social media showed a huge alligator wading past parked cars and a bear perched on an air-conditioning unit on the side of a building.
President Giorgi Margvelashvili sent his condolences to the victims' families as he visited the affected area to observe the clean-up operation.
Images from #Tbilisi. Lions, alligators, bears, hippos roaming the streets after floods. pic.twitter.com/bBTqVe0r8s
— Haidar Sumeri (@IraqiSecurity) June 14, 2015"The human losses that we have suffered are very hard to tolerate. I express my condolences to all the people who lost their relatives," said Margvelashvili.
Several main thoroughfares in the city of 1.2 million were covered with thick layer of mud and hundreds of fallen trees.
Mayor David Narmania called on Tbilisi residents to help take part in the clean-up operations that are under way throughout the city, with his office saying that dozens of families had been left without shelter and thousands without water and electricity.