What to Do if a Zebra Escapes

The video shows a female caretaker in a striped costume who pretended to hurt one staffer and cause another’s heart attack before getting tranquilized and captured.

From the AP YouTube description, we learn: “Staff at a Japanese zoo staged an emergency drill on Tuesday simulating the recapture of an escaped zebra”.

She said being in the zebra costume helped her empathize with the zoo animals.

“Zebras are animals that panic easily, so when humans actually came close”.

“I myself felt panicky when acting it out”, she told reporters.

The annual exercise has proven popular with visitors.

How do you prepare for the nightmare scenario of wild, potentially unsafe animals escaping a zoo after a large quake?

A total of 150 zoo staff, and members of the police and fire departments participated in the biannual simulation at the Ueno Zoological Gardens in Tokyo.

“I think it’s necessary but…it would’ve been nice if the atmosphere were more tense, but it was interesting”, said 38-year-old Hiroko Onishi.

The Tokyo zoos have been holding these trainings frequently since 1980. While some say a two-legged zebra is unrealistic, others enjoy the spectacle.