Tiger nearly kills man after escaping from enclosure in Johannesburg

A man in Johannesburg was nearly killed over the weekend when a tiger escaped from an enclosure and attacked him.

Authorities are now hunting for the eight-year-old female Bengal tiger after it escaped from a private farm near Johannesburg, South Africa.

Gresham Mandy, a member of a local policing forum, claimed the tiger escaped after an unknown person cut the fence.

The tiger then attacked a man, two dogs and a deer kept on the same farm.

Mandy said one dog and the deer were killed, while the second dog was so badly injured it had to be put down.

According to local media, the man who was attacked miraculously survived and was taken to the hospital.

Residents have been warned to be on high alert in the Walkerville region south of Johannesburg and avoid confronting the tiger if they come across it.

Meanwhile, about 30 people from the police, nature conservation organisations and local community groups are searching the area where the animal's latest tracks were identified.

Officials directing the search suspect that the female tiger, named Sheba, could be hiding in a bushy area for shade.

They believe the tiger could start moving around again once the summer heat subsided or when it needed to drink water.

Mandy said: "We are using drones, (a) helicopter ...but it's proving a little difficult with the density of the bush."

Members of a special police task force were expected to start leading the search on Monday and take over from a local community police group and the SPCA animal protection group.

Mandy said the first priority was to tranquilise the animal with a dart and bring it back safely.

He said that the tiger escaped after a fence at the smallholding where it was kept was cut by burglars.

"It seems like the thieves cut the fence to enter and exit the property. The tiger saw that and used the cut fence to escape," Mandy said.

The big cat was kept on the farm as a pet

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