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The sheep got free from its enclosure and darted through an
area where zoo visitors were gathered. It escaped the zoo,
probably by jumping a fence, and scampered around the hills of
the park, said zoo spokeswoman April Spurlock.
The animal was loose for about three hours before it was struck
by a car on a residential street near the Greek Theatre, she
said. The concert venue is about 2 miles southwest of the zoo,
on the other side of Griffith Park.
Veterinarians and animal care staff set up a perimeter around
the sheep and tranquilized it. The animal died a short time
later, Spurlock said, and it appears the sheep succumbed to
injuries from being hit by the car but a necropsy is planned to
determine the exact cause of death.
The car's driver did not stop after striking the animal, but
witnesses saw the car-on-sheep collision, Spurlock said.
When the sheep was loose in the zoo, one patron "encountered"
the animal, Spurlock said, but she could not say if the person
was injured.
Zoo officials were still trying to determine how the animal got
out of its enclosure, which has four other sheep.
The Los Angeles Zoo has seen a number of animals get free over
the years. In 2000, a gorilla got out of her enclosure and
frolicked around the zoo as a news helicopter filmed it from
above.
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by David Gregorio)
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