The Hangzhou Fuyang district officials had never had such an unusual problem before. The area was in a panic and for good reason. People were outraged over the cover-up.
There was a very real danger lurking about. They had to act fast and use whatever resources and tactics they could to ensure the escapee was caught. The fear was that someone may be attacked at any time.
The Beginning
It was mid-April when the powers that be figured out what had happened. The danger was very real whether residents knew it or not. As the massive Labor Day celebrations loomed, something had to be done.
The celebrations would bring larger crowds. All that people together in one area would only increase the chances of something going wrong. The organization should have placed the city's safety first. They opted to cover up the incident instead.
A Dire Situation
It was well-known that officials of the region were more prone to covering up scandals than seeking to rectify them. In Hangzhou, China, this pattern repeated itself. A closed-door emergency meeting took place.
They had to choose between the safety of the public and the potential fallout once people knew. Thinking only of themselves, the officials decided to hide the truth.
What You Don't Know
Residents of Hangzhou, a large city in China prepared for their annual Labor Day, which was typically a five-day celebration. However, the residents had no idea that they were in grave danger.
There was nothing that could justify the cover-up. It was an unprecedented situation but there was still no good reason to hide the truth.
There Was Hope
The organization quietly tried to diffuse the situation behind closed doors. It was their hope that if they could fix it all before people knew, there was no need to cause panic and alarm.
The early indication was that their secret plans and efforts were working. They banked on the rest of it being fixed the same way. Only, things didn't work out that way.
The Escape
Initially, one of the dangerous escapees had been caught and secured. This gave officials hope. They could not afford to give up now. They were too far in. However, the other threats were still out there.
Reports began surfacing and it seemed that the public was realizing that something wasn't right. They could have cut their losses then and told the truth. instead, they doubled down and made an already dire situation even worse.
Bringing In The Government
When Labor Day was right around the corner, only then did they realize that something had to be done now. They informed the local government and requested emergency assistance to contain the problem.
They were given a huge boost to bolster their search. The only question that remained now was whether they would be able to track down the other escapee in time.
Unusual Methods
It was an unusual situation and unusual methods were therefore required to fix it. Anyone that took notice would likely have no clue what was happening.
Soon, the hunting and containment efforts comprised of an eclectic mix of different experts. There were also trained animals, along with chickens, and specialized equipment that had to be brought in.
The Celebration
The organization got what it had hoped for. Labor Day celebrations came around and a whopping 97000 people visited them. Unfortunately, the visitors had no idea they were in danger.
It was around that time that video footage of one of the tracking missions was released. People were confused and outraged at being kept in the dark. Finally, the organization knew that the full truth had to be revealed.
What Happened
When people learned what an unconscionable thing the Hangzhou Safari Park had done, it sparked a huge public outcry. It was unforgivable. A security blunder allowed three fully-grown wild leopards to escape their enclosure.
There had been sightings of the dangerous animals roaming around the city and countryside. Initially, the park denied there was any problem. While the truth was finally out, there was still one huge challenge.
Unforgivable
Early on, one of the leopards was tracked down and caught. Some 1700 personnel and several unique tactics were used to track down the other two. The second leopard was finally caught but was severely injured by the tracker dogs used to find it.
The negligence that led to the animals escaping caused enough outrage on its own. When the public learned why it was initially covered up, locals demanded accountability for those involved as their reasons were considered unforgivable.
The Cover-Up
When news finally emerged, and the truth was revealed, Labor Day celebrations had already passed. It turned out that when officials of the Hangzhou Safari Park learned of the leopards’ escape, they could have warned the public then.
Instead, as Labor Day was approaching, they realized that alerting the public would lead to a loss of revenue for the park on Labor Day. The truth was that public safety was not deemed as important as the loss of ticket sales at the time.
The Fallout
In the end, the search for the third leopard required more than 100 chickens to be used as bait, and 990 drones needed to be deployed. The expert tech included a parachute vehicle operated by a licensed pilot, infra-red sensors, and a host of other personnel, animals, and tactics.
The massive effort, the scale of the cost, and reputational damage within the region were felt for months. Five officials from the park were arrested. Despite all this, the risk only increased.
The Risks
Experts weighed in on the plight of the last escapee. So much time had passed that the third leopard was now likely weakened. Most people thought this was a good thing. The truth was that it actually made the situation more volatile.
Initially, the danger of a person being attacked was slim. However, since it was now probably on the brink of starvation, this opened up the possibility that it may become desperate. Therefore, the risks posed by the last leopard had actually increased.
Never Found
More than six months after the entire debacle unfolded, the park quietly reopened for business. The entire incident had been a costly, public lesson in accountability.
Life in Hangzhou finally returned to normal, and residents soon began getting over what had happened. In the end, the third leopard was never found. Most experts believed it had likely perished from starvation, but no one was ever really sure exactly what had happened to it.