Zimbabwe lion at wildlife orphanage kills woman

A lion has killed a worker at a wildlife orphanage in Zimbabwe.

The animal escaped through a cage which had mistakenly been left open and attacked 26-year-old Robyn Lotz.

A statement by the Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage says the black-maned lion, known as Lobi, then pulled her to the ground and held her head in its mouth.

The orphanage director shot the lion but Ms Lotz died of her injuries shortly after having been taken to a hospital in Bulawayo.

The attack on Tuesday morning happened as staff were cleaning the cages and bedding them down with clean grass.

"To my horror and dismay I saw Lobi crouched over Robyn, he had her in his mouth and was holding her at the back of her head," director Kevin Wilson said in a statement posted on the Chipangali website.

The orphanage was established in 1973 and cares for animals which have been orphaned, abandoned, injured, born in captivity, confiscated or brought up unsuccessfully as pets.