Japan zoo stages safety drill with staff member dressed in lion costume; video clip goes viral

A video of the mock-drill, which was conducted at the Tobe Zoo in Ehime, soon went viral, leaving many amused. In the 59-second clip, the “lion” can be seen roaming around the premises of the zoo, “attacking” those that tried to capture it. Soon, a van follows the “escaped lion” and one of the zookeepers fires a tranquiliser, making the lion fall to the ground.

aaaand 13k rts later I realize I made a mistake. The zoo is in Ehime, not Aichi. I can’t believe no one has yelled at me yet.

I always misread Aichi (愛知) and Ehime (愛媛) 😓

— Spoon & Tamago (@Johnny_suputama) June 23, 2019

The drill was staged to create a real-life situation so that employees of the zoo are prepared. After the pretend-animal was shot, it was poked with a long stick to check whether it’s still conscious, and later workers rushed to wrap its body in a net.

Interestingly, the viral clip also seemed to feature some real lions, who can be seen peacefully sitting in a corner and probably judging the drill. Once shared online, it did not take long for the clip to go viral, with many commenting on the reactions of the real lions and the mock drill.

Lions are like “what in the hell is this?” pic.twitter.com/NFiI1RNkpb

— Angie Baer (@angiebaermn) June 22, 2019

That’s what they WANTED them to see. The lions will be totally fooled by the REAL emergency plan. 🤫

— Sydney E. Falk (@SydneyEFalk) June 22, 2019

pic.twitter.com/d0btVc1D1w

— Professor* Harbinger (@profharbinger) June 22, 2019

Lion 1: That’s not half bad.
Lion 2: No. It’s all bad!
(Lions laugh)

— Raelene Lowe (@loweliferae) June 22, 2019

Those lions were like pic.twitter.com/0VlcPQHRmD

— Rowan Crook (@RoowanCrook) June 22, 2019

Definitely the lions looking at this misery 🤣

— Thunder ⛈ (@poshthunder) June 22, 2019