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BFF-24
INDONESIA-TIGER-ANIMAL
Rare Sumatran tiger rescued from beneath shop in Indonesia
PEKANBARU, Indonesia, Nov 17, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A rare Sumatran tiger that
was trapped beneath the floor of a shop for three days has been rescued, an
Indonesian official said Saturday.
The three-year old male was freed from the 75 centimetre (30 inch) crawl
space on Burung Island in Riau province at about 1:50 am, the local
conservation agency said.
“After the tiger was successfully put to sleep we opened up part of the
shop’s foundation to do the evacuation,” Suharyono, head of the Riau
conservation agency, told AFP.
The 80-kilo (180-pound) animal was treated by veterinarians for minor
wounds on its legs and cracked canines, officials said.
The big cat became stuck between two buildings in the densely populated
market area on Wednesday before freeing himself and then becoming trapped
again beneath the building.
Video footage showed the tiger lying on its belly between two concrete
foundations, unable to move.
The tiger has been transported to a rehabilitation centre.
Sumatran tigers are considered critically endangered by the International
Union for Conservation of Nature.
There are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild and environmental
activists say they are increasingly coming into conflict with people as their
natural habitat is rapidly deforested.
BSS/AFP/FI/ 1312