Berlin’s beloved polar bear Knut, who rose to international stardom as a cuddly cub hand-raised by zookeepers, died suddenly on Saturday, a zoo official said.
The world-famous bear died alone in his compound without warning, bear keeper Heiner Kloes told The Associated Press. A lot of zoo animals have been dying lately and one has to wonder what the hell is going on?
“It was a completely normal day: He was with the female bears before, who had just been shut away,” Kloes said. “Then, Knut strolled around the enclosure, went into the water, had a short spasm and died.”
A post mortem will be conducted on Monday to try to pinpoint the cause of death, he said.
Between 600 and 700 people were at Knut’s compound and saw the four-year-old bear die, German news agency DAPD reported.
One visitor said she watched Knut lying on the surface of the water motionless with only his back showing for ten minutes until zookeepers came and fenced off the compound.
“Everybody was asking, ‘What’s going on, why is Knut not moving?'” said Camilla Verde, a 30-year-old Italian who lives in Berlin.
“All the zoo keepers who put up the fences were so very sad. One of them said, ‘He was our baby,'” she said.
As the news of Knut’s death spread through the city, more Knut fans showed up at the zoo, assembling in front of the bear compound to mourn his loss.
I think the eco-terrorists who said that “he should have been left to die” might have had a hand in this. These loons were angered by the fact that he was raised by humans after his mother abandoned him at birth. They felt that if his mother abandoned him that human beings had no right to interfere. What a bunch of scums. They should have been left to die at birth because they all grew up to be effing misfits and weirdos.
