The man who was mauled to death by a tiger at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park has been named.
The terrifying attack unfolded at the family attraction near Doncaster on Saturday afternoon following reports that a man had entered the tiger enclosure.
Eyewitnesses told how they saw the cat pounce on the man from its landing point.
He is said to have entered the pen wearing headphones after pacing around near it, with witnesses claiming he was seen dancing to ‘psyche himself up’ moments before.
The man, who was visiting the park alone, suffered fatal injuries in the attack and was pronounced dead at the scene.
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The victim is understood to be a man called William Chapman, according to the BBC and Daily Mail, although he is yet to be officially named.
He is believed to be in his 20s.
In the since-deleted distressing social media footage, he was seen filming himself as he walked towards Altai, a five-year-old endangered Amur tiger, which was resting on its platform.
He can be heard breathing heavily while other visitors shout and cry ‘oh my God’ in the background.
When the tiger attacked, Mr Chapman screamed ‘stop’ and ‘no’ and appeared to gesture using what is believed to be sign language, the Daily Mail reports.
Other visitors watched in shock as Mr Chapman cried out as the animal attacked his neck and dragged him away. Tigers are known to stalk their prey before targeting the throat or back of the neck.
Park rangers reportedly fired warning shots to drive the 400lbs tiger away.
Yorkshire Wildlife Park, which remains closed, confirmed that Altai will not be euthanised following the incident.
South Yorkshire Police said: ‘The tiger subsequently attacked the man, resulting in serious injury.
‘Emergency services attended and sadly, despite the best efforts of medical personnel, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
‘The man’s family is aware and is being supported by specialist officers. Our thoughts are with them at this distressing time.
‘Regarding rumours surrounding the condition of the tiger, the animal was uninjured and remained in the enclosure following the incident and there is no wider risk to the public.’
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