Woman loses arm in lion attack at Darling Downs Zoo in Queensland

Molly Magennis
7NEWS
The woman attacked by a lion at Darling Downs Zoo in Queensland lost her arm in the incident.
The woman attacked by a lion at Darling Downs Zoo in Queensland lost her arm in the incident. Credit: 7NEWS

The woman attacked by a lion at a regional zoo in Queensland lost her arm in the horrific incident.

It’s understood the woman, aged in her 50s, was watching keepers working in the carnivore precinct at Darling Downs Zoo when a lioness grabbed her arm.

She was assessed by paramedics at the scene before being airlifted to Princess Alexandra Hospital.

Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.

Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.

Email Us
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.

The woman lost her arm in the attack and underwent emergency surgery.

She remains in hospital in a stable condition.

The zoo closed following the incident.

In a statement issued on Sunday afternoon it said a member of staff was watching keepers working in the carnivore precinct when an animal “grabbed her by one arm and caused severe damage to it”.

“At no stage did this animal leave it’s enclosure and there was no risk at all to staff members or members of the public,” the zoo said.

According to the statement the woman had observed keepers in the precinct “many, many times over the past 20 years”.

“She is well versed in safety protocols around potentially dangerous animals,” the zoo said.

Darling Downs Zoo is owned by Steve and Stephanie Robinson.
Darling Downs Zoo is owned by Steve and Stephanie Robinson. Credit: 7NEWS
One of the lions at the zoo.
One of the lions at the zoo. Credit: 7NEWS
Police at the scene.
Police at the scene. Credit: 7NEWS

The animal involved in the incident will not be put down.

“The zoo is working with them to establish how this incident occurred but the full details will not be known until our family member can be interviewed,” Darling Downs Zoo said.

The popular attraction is expected to reopen at 9am on Tuesday.

The regional zoo is owned by Steve and Stephanie Robinson who began breeding lions in 1997.

The couple tried to sell the zoo in March last year due to Steve’s deteriorating health.

Only a few months later the couple instead decided to restructure the ownership of the zoo into a trust.

A host of new positions at the zoo were advertised to help better manage the workload given Steve’s health and the physical demands of the job.

However in March this year the zoo was again put up for sale for $6 million.

Originally published on 7NEWS

Latest Edition

The Nightly cover for 04-07-2025

Latest Edition

Edition Edition 4 July 20254 July 2025

Empowered or exploited? OnlyFans stars like Annie Knight are one-upping each other with extreme sex stunts in a race to fame and fortune. But at what cost?