Tiger death zoo walls 'too low'

Police chief Heather Fong points out the tiger enclosure

The director of a US zoo where an escaped tiger killed one man has admitted that the wall around the tiger enclosure was lower than recommended.

The main accrediting agency for United States zoos recommends that the minimum height for walls at a tiger exhibit should be 16.4ft (5m).

San Francisco Zoo director Manuel Mollinedo now acknowledges that the wall measured 12.5ft (3.81m).

But he also said the enclosure had passed safety inspections.

The Association of Zoos & Aquariums - which recommends the 5m minimum height - examined the wall three years ago and did not remark upon its size, Mr Mollinedo was quoted by AP news agency as saying.

"Obviously now that something's happened, we're going to be revisiting the actual height," he added.

The 300lb (136kg) animal escaped on Christmas Day, killing 17-year-old Carlos Sousa and injuring two others.

She was shot dead as she loomed over one of the injured men.