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Bongo escapes pen at Atlanta Zoo, forcing guests into buildings

ATLANTA — The Atlanta Zoo had a scare Wednesday when one of its animals escaped its pen.

Tambo, an adult male eastern bongo, “briefly left his habitat” Wednesday afternoon. The zoo’s staff is currently investigating the circumstances behind the incident.

Zoo officials said the incident caused no harm to Zoo Atlanta guests, staff or the animal, and the situation was safely resolved.

The zoo was temporarily closed during the incident, and zoo guests were escorted to the nearest buildings as a safety precaution.

Tambo appeared to be calm and did not behave aggressively at any time during the incident, zoo officials said. On-site veterinarians were able to safely tranquilize him and return him to his holding area, where he is recovering normally.

The zoo’s Animal Management, Veterinary and Security Teams responded promptly and followed standard procedures and protocol.

Eastern bongos are a critically endangered antelope species found in eastern Africa.