Lions,tigers and bears killed in Ohio

I heard about this early this morning and assumed it was some kind of joke or early morning radio prank. Forty eight animals were shot by law officers after escaping through open gates at a private exotic animal preserve. Eighteen tigers,seventeen lions three mountain lions six black bears, two grizzlies and a baboon. According to authorities a gray wolf and monkey are on the loose. The monkey may be carrying a virus.
The former Democratic governor had issued an executive order that might have closed the zoo but it expired under when the new governor a Republican took office. The rules are now under review again.

The order might have forced [zoo owner]Thompson to surrender his menagerie, said Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive of the Humane Society of the United States. Bill Damschroder, chief counsel for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said the order was unenforceable and that the Kasich administration is developing a law to regulate the ownership of wild animals. The Zanesville incident likely will speed its passage, Rob Nichols, a Kasich spokesman, said by phone.