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LIVE1:00 P.M. UPDATE FROM THE CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN ZOO
There’s a lot of work taking place at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo today. Staff members have been checking every animal for injuries and others are working to assess the sheer amount of damage.
Zoo President, Bob Chastain held a news conference at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday to talk about the massive hail storm that hit the Zoo at about 3:00 p.m. Monday afternoon.
Chastain says seven employees were injured, three of those were taken to the hospital and later released.
304 cars were severely damaged in the parking lot. 214 still remain in the lot and 128 of those belong to employees.
Sixteen animals were injured by the hail. Most of the injuries are welts from being struck by the hail. Two of the animals were killed and staff members are still searching for a Meerkat that may be missing.
The majority of the damage to the Zoo’s buildings involves numerous skylights.
William Hibbard of El Pomar Foundation announced that a $100-thousand dollar grant is being made to the Zoo to assist in their recovery efforts.
Earlier Tuesday, officials at the zoo say they were expecting severe weather, they weren’t expecting the baseball-sized hail that came with none of the usual weather warnings. The large hail moved in very quickly, causing Zoo guests, staff and animals to scramble to find shelter. There were 3400 guests at the Zoo at the time that the storm hit.
The Zoo’s summer camps are canceled for the remainder of the week and full refunds will be issued.
