Taronga Zoo has commissioned an independent engineer to complete a "full review" of how five lions escaped their enclosure through a fence that suffered an "integrity issue".
Police were called to the zoo on Sydney Harbour's north shore early on Wednesday morning amid "an emergency situation", where one male lion and four cubs breached a containment fence.
At the time, patrons of Taronga Zoo's "roar and snore" overnight glamping experience were ordered to leave their tents and take refuge in a bathroom while the lions were secured.
The zoo's executive director, Simon Duffy, said four of the cats returned to the main exhibit on their own, with one cub needing to be "safely tranquilised".
While a review into the circumstances that led to the "code one" emergency continues, the zoo has provided no further detail on what caused "integrity issue" with the containment fence.
It says "no issues were reported" during the keepers' daily perimeter checks on Tuesday.
"The fencing product is specially designed and engineered for zoo purposes and has been used in zoos across the world," the zoo added in a statement.
"The fence is maintained by specialist tradespeople and fencing technicians.
"A review of the incident is still underway and, in light of what's occurred, Taronga has also commissioned an independent engineer to complete a full review of the fence."
A re-design of Taronga's lion enclosure was completed in 2020.
On its now removed webpage, Tensile Design and Construct stated it was commissioned to design and install the enclosure, alongside a construction company and architectural firm.
The page stated the fence was built out of a mesh made from "durable" steel wire rope, which was "strong enough to withstand the force of a charging animal".
"With lions being powerful animals that can jump fences as high as 5 metres, safety was the top priority for the enclosure fence," it read.
Peter Bottero — Tensile's managing director — said in a statement that the company had "a very positive relationship" with the zoo and was "deeply concerned to hear of the issue with the lion enclosure".
"We cannot comment on any potential cause as an investigation is underway and the facts are not confirmed, but we intend to continue to work with the Taronga Zoo team to help resolve things," he said.
