San Francisco Tiger exhibit re-opens

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 7 (UPI) -- The Lion House at the San Francisco Zoo has reopened, 10 months after a keeper was mauled by a Siberian Tiger.

The media was present for the reopening of the feline dining hall, where zoo patrons get to watch the big cats feed, The San Francisco Chronicle reported Friday.

The dining hall has $250,000 in safety upgrades to protect the keepers and the zoo’s patrons.

"Soon we will witness a tradition that dates back to the 1940s," the zoo's education director, Joe Fitting, told the 30or so media representatives who witnessed the re-opening.

The food for the four lions -- three Sumatran tigers and two Siberians -- is now slid into a feeding chute attached to every cage.

The woman who was mauled in December, Lori Komejan, has filed a lawsuit against the zoo, claiming that better security could have prevented her injuries.

A Serbian tiger tore away all the tendon tissue on her right arm. She has recovered and has started re-learning to write and draw with her left hand.