, Georgia : Lions, hippopotamus, tiger, bear and other animals have invaded the town of Georgia after flood destroys their zoo. The animals escaped the zoo and have been roaming the street, residents have been asked to stay indoors while rescue workers searched for submerged homes to rescue trapped residents.
The flooding which started when a heavy rain and wind hit Tbilisi during the night, causing a small stream that runs through the city into a surging river, bursting its banks. The flooding has rendered dozens of residents homeless.
Some of the animals have been found, while a lot are still on the loose. A hippo was found round the city's main square and was subdued with a tranquillizer gun.The incident has claimed the lives of 12 people include three zoo workers.
IMAGE: SHAKH AIVAZOV/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mayor David Narmania said ;
Not all the animals who ran away from the zoo have been captured. Therefore, I want to ask the populace to refrain from moving about the city without" an urgent need to
Georgian prime minister, Irakli Garibashvili, called on residents to stay indoors until all animals are found.
The head of Georgian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Ilia II, was quoted by Interfax news agency to have said, the flood happening is caused by Georgian former communist rulers. He said :
When Communists came to us in this country, they ordered that all crosses and bells of the churches be melted down and the money used to build the zoo," he said. "The sin will not go without punishment. I am very sorry that Georgians fell so that a zoo was built at the expense of destroyed churches.