“We did not take the shooting of Harambe lightly, but that child’s life was in danger”, said Cincinnati Zoo Director Thane Maynard.
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A 4-year-old boy slipped through a barricade at the gorilla exhibit on Saturday and fell into a small moat.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals released a statement from its primatologist Julia Gallucci saying the zoo should have had better barriers between humans and the gorillas.
Animal lovers turned their anger toward the parents while mourning the death of the gorilla, lighting candles and holding “Rest in Peace” signs at the vigil.
At certain points in the video, it looks like the gorilla is caring for the child, helping him stand up and touching his hand.
Michelle Gregg, who identified herself on Facebook as the boy’s mother, said her son was recovering from a concussion and a few scrapes.
Risako Kita of Detroit holds her 18-month-old daughter Yuzuki as they watch a gorilla at the Toledo Zoo.
People laid flowers and commemorative notes at a gorilla statue inside the zoo, and local media reported that activists planned a vigil on Monday.
Prosecutors said they will work with police to determine whether criminal charges will be filed.
The station reports more graphic parts of the video not shown include Harambe dragging the boy.
“[Harambe] was probably doing all the kind of benign things that a gorilla can do and he was being penalised for it and lost his life and traumatised his entire family”, she said.
“Obviously the child was upset and people were screaming, our security team emptied the exhibit, and the dang animal response team officer came and dispatched Harambe”.
According to Maynard, those criticizing the zoo officials for killing the animal “don’t understand silverback gorillas”, Maynard said in a news conference on Monday.
“Accidents happen but I am thankful that the right people were in the right place today”.
The zoo would review the barrier to see if it could be improved, he said.
Harambe was sent to Cincinnati less than two years ago in hopes he would eventually breed with gorillas there.
“Looking back, we would make the same decision”, Mayard said.
Executive Director of The Gorilla Organisation, Jillian Miller, says Harambe was not actually attacking the boy; that it in fact looked like he was protecting the four-year-old.
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But the incident at the Cincinnati Zoo on Saturday – in which a young child ended up being trapped for several minutes with a 450-pound male gorilla in a watery ditch – has reverberated here. A spokeswoman for the family said on Monday they had no plans to comment.
