63-year-old mother accepts blame for deadly inferno at zoo
<p>A fire broke out in a zoo in Western Germany just minutes into the new year, killing more than 30 animals.</p>
<p>A 60-year-old woman and her two adult daughters have turned themselves in after hearing that the blaze killed five orangutans, two gorillas and a chimpanzee as well as many more monkeys, birds and bats.</p>
<p>The women bought five Chinese lanterns, which are banned locally and in most of Germany for over a decade. The trio believed that they were allowed on New Year’s Eve and had inscribed good wishes for the new year in the lanterns, according to chief investigator<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://10daily.com.au/news/world/a200102ezmoj/grandmother-turns-herself-in-after-new-years-zoo-tragedy-that-killed-30-animals-20200102" target="_blank">Gerd Hoppmann.</a></p>
<p>Only two chimpanzees were able to be rescued from the flames by firefighters. They suffered burns but are in a stable condition.</p>
<blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B6vevaBqXVp/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12">
<div style="padding: 16px;">
<div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div>
<div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div>
<div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div>
<div style="padding-top: 8px;">
<div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div>
</div>
<p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B6vevaBqXVp/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">Wir wünschen euch einen guten Rutsch in ein hoffentlich erfolgreiches Jahr 2020. Kommt gut 'rein und feiert fleißig! 🎉 Wir freuen uns auf ein tolles neues Jahr mit Euch! Euer Team vom #ZooKrefeld Fotos: Magnus Neuhaus #silvester #silvester2019 #jahresende #jahreswende #kommtgutrein #jahresübergang #orangutan #orangutans #orangutanborneo #wildlifephotography #zooborn #monkeys #monkey #primate #animal #animals #wild #wildlife #nature #naturelovers #zoophotography #zoo #zoolife #zoolove #zoolovers #zoozeit #krefeld #krefelderzoo</a></p>
<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/zookrefeld/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank"> Zoo Krefeld</a> (@zookrefeld) on Dec 31, 2019 at 7:30am PST</p>
</div>
</blockquote>
<p>"It's close to a miracle that Bally, a 40-year-old female chimpanzee, and Limbo, a younger male, survived this inferno," Mr Dressen said, adding that many of the zoo's animal handlers were in shock at the devastation.</p>
<p>"We have to seriously work through the mourning process," Mr Dressen said. "This is an unfathomable tragedy."</p>
<p>The Krefeld zoo opened in 1975 and attracts over 400,000 visitors each year.</p>
