Zookeeper dies after leopard attack

A woman has died after being attacked by a leopard at the safari park where she spent almost her entire 40-year career.

The zookeeper, whose identity has been withheld in line with Dutch privacy laws, died on Tuesday after being attacked on Saturday at the Beekse Bergen safari park.

She had suffered serious wounds to her head and neck while working in an enclosure with two male Persian leopards, a statement from the park said.

"Her passing deeply affects us all, and we sympathise intensely with her family, friends and loved ones," a statement released by the zoo said.

The woman began working at the zoo, in the southern town of Hilvarenbeek, when she was 17 and spent nearly all of her 40-year career there.

An investigation is under way to determine why she was in the enclosure, as zoo staff are typically not allowed to be in the same space as predatory animals.

The woman was able to use a walkie-talkie to alert colleagues she had been hurt, the zoo said.

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An ambulance and a trauma helicopter were dispatched to the park at around 11am local time on Saturday (10am UK).

The woman underwent emergency surgery, but her condition worsened on Sunday evening.

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