Tiger wall at zoo below standard height

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- The wall around the tiger exhibit at the San Francisco Zoo, where a man was killed by an escaped tiger, was 4 feet lower than national standards.

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which inspected the tiger exhibit three years ago, didn't raise questions about the height or safety of the wall, The San Francisco Chronicle reported. The recommendation that tigers be secured with walls at least 16 1/2 feet high is advisory and a spokesman said that the only mandatory standard is that walls be big and strong enough to keep tigers in.

The Chronicle said the wall that bounds a dry moat of the tiger's enclosure was 12 1/2-feet tall. Zoo officials said Thursday they had been unsure how tall the wall was.

Carlos Sousa, 17, of San Jose, Calif., was fatally mauled by a Siberian tiger on Christmas Day while two brothers, friends of his, were severely injured. Police killed the tiger.

The zoo has been closed since the attack. The lock-down has been so strict that a florist was unable to deliver a sympathy gift from the Pittsburgh Zoo, the newspaperr said.

Police were waiting to question Amritpal "Paul" Dhaliwal, 19, or Kulbir Dhaliwal, 23. Investigators say that the attack may have been provoked, possibly by one of the three friends reaching over the wall, the Chronicle said.

The newspaper said the two injured men may be released from the hospital this weekend.