Lioness shot dead after escaping from South Korean farm

It is unclear whether the lioness posed a threat, or whether authorities had tried to use a tranquiliser dart to catch it alive

- A lion was shot dead in South Korea on Monday after escaping from a privately owned farm and triggering a search by more than 100 police officers and the evacuation of dozens of campers from a nearby camping area.

The lioness, named Sasoonee, was reported to be on the loose at around 7:30 a.m. (2230 GMT Sunday) in the southeastern county of Goryeong. It was believed to have escaped through a back door of the farm that was left open, the Yonhap news agency said, citing the farm owner.

The animal was shot dead after being discovered by authorities in bushes near the farm about an hour later, a fire official told Reuters.

The official said she had no information on whether the lioness posed a threat, or whether authorities had tried to use a tranquiliser dart to catch it alive.

Yonhap reported that the farm offered tours to the public to see its animals.

Photographs released by fire authorities showed the lioness hiding in bushes and its body after it was shot.

Authorities issued a safety alert, advising the public to call an emergency hotline if they spotted the lion, and dozens of campers on a nearby mountain briefly took refuge in a town as police searched, Yonhap reported.

The lion was the latest animal to escape from captivity in South Korea in recent months.

A zebra got out of a zoo in the capital, Seoul, before being caught in March, and one of two chimpanzees that ran away from a zoo in the southeastern city of Daegu died after being shot with a tranquiliser dart last week.