Dutch Zookeeper Dies After Leopard Attack at Beekse Bergen Safari Park

A longtime zookeeper at Beekse Bergen Safari Park in Hilvarenbeek, in the south of the Netherlands, died on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, from injuries she suffered in a leopard attack in an enclosure over the weekend. The park announced her death in a statement made together with her family. Her name has been withheld in accordance with Dutch privacy law.

Attack inside an indoor enclosure

She suffered serious wounds to her head and neck on Saturday, October 24, 2026, while working in an enclosure with two male Persian leopards. The leopards had been moved to an indoor enclosure because of bad weather. Zoo staff are typically not permitted to be in the same space as predatory animals, and an investigation is underway to determine why she was in the enclosure with the leopards.

She alerted colleagues by walkie-talkie that she had been hurt. An ambulance and a trauma helicopter were dispatched to the park at around 11 a.m. local time on Saturday, and she was taken to hospital for emergency surgery. Her condition worsened on Sunday evening, October 25, and the park said it did not expect her to survive. She died on Tuesday, October 27.

Nearly 40 years at the park

The keeper began working at the park at the age of 17. The park said she spent nearly all of her 40 year career there, with only a few short interruptions. "Her passing deeply affects us all, and we sympathize intensely with her family, friends, and loved ones," the park said in its statement. Reports say she had cared for the leopards for about eight years.

The indoor facility has no surveillance cameras, so what led up to the attack is unclear, and an independent investigation will be carried out. Dutch reports also named the Dutch Labour Inspectorate as investigating.

Leopards will not be euthanised

A park spokesperson told Omroep Brabant that the leopards were behaving normally and would not be euthanised. "They are, and remain, predators," the spokesperson said. In Saturday coverage, head of animal care Martin van Hees said the leopard involved would not be put down.

The park said an area will be set up in the park where condolences can be left, and staff will be given time to grieve. Safaripark Beekse Bergen is the largest wildlife zoo in the Benelux region, located between Tilburg and Hilvarenbeek, and is home to about 1,250 animals from over 150 species.