San Francisco Tiger Attack

San Francisco Zoo Tiger Attack

(Recorded - December 23, 2007)

On the day of December 23, 2007, a terrible vision was shown to me while I was in the middle of my afternoon siesta.

And there I was transported in spirit to a place that I wasn't familiar with at all. I found myself walking ahead of 2 wild piglets down a quiet street that appeared normal at first glance. All was well as we continued on our way, but then all of a sudden I heard noises of angry beasts coming from behind me. I turned around to see what it was and to my horror, I realized the seemingly peaceful street we were on was now filled with wild carnivorous animals.

The animals were unforgivably ferocious. They included mainly Lions and Tigers but a few other exotic beasts of the forest were also in the mix and they were all racing down the street towards us, myself and the piglets. Somehow, given the variety of animals I saw, I got the impression I was at a Zoo. I wouldn't know what a zoo looks like since I've never been to one neither do I have the desire to go to one. But in this dream, somehow, I knew I was at a zoo.

The presence of the ferocious creatures frightened me beyond description. I was petrified and woefully alarmed. I feared for my life and also that of the two piglets that were with me. Ironically, as horrified as I was, the wild beasts didn't seem to notice me at all. They were too busy chasing each other around in anger. It was as though I was a ghost. Nonetheless, I still felt threatened by their presence since I was in their midst and well within reach. There was no where to run.

Though this dream started with me and the two piglets, I don't know what happened but for whatever reason, the two piglets disappeared and weren't with me anymore. I was now alone at this point.

I looked around nervously in hopes of finding a safe place to hide but my anxious search yielded nothing. There was however a very short fence behind me that was only high up to my waist. Since this was all the protection I could find, I quickly climbed on top of it and continued to shiver at the demonic congregation of flesh eating beasts.

From what I can see standing on that short fence, I saw a Lion before me that appeared VERY angry. I know this Lion was furious because he was chasing after and starting fights with every living thing that came within proximity. No other animal in the mix dared to withstand his might.

While this lion was dominantly prancing around, I saw a female Tiger run past me to face him. I knew it was a female tiger because the breasts underneath her jiggled as she walked.

When she eventually reached the Lion, a beastly fight ensued.

During this fight, I saw the Tigress take a swipe at the Lion's face with her left claw but when the Lion struck back at her, he struck with such overpowering vengeance that almost ripped the Tigress's head right off her body. It was as if the Lion thought to himself "how dare you swing at me".

Though at the beginning of the fight the Tigress got to hit first, that first hit ended up being the last movement she ever got to make. She was quickly overwhelmed and attacked mercilessly. After the Lion rendered her motionless, I saw from the wounds and tear on her lifeless body that he had been much worse to her than he was to the other animals he'd previously fought with. And when the battle was finally over, all that was left of the female Tiger were remnants of her fur. Watching this unfold in front me was quite unnerving. Was I next?

Though the bestial fight was done with and the Lion had won, I was still standing on that short fence trembling in fear.

As the vision continued, something weird happened.

While still dreaming, I was reminded that something similar to what I just saw had happened in the past. I remembered that the Lion had once before, in the past, jumped up on the fence I was on to attack me.

This uncanny recollection within a dream was unusual. It did nothing but make matters worse. I didn't know what to do. I was unable to move due to the paralyzing fear that gripped my body.

I jolted awake from this nightmarish vision with sweat oozing out of the pores on my body. I was grateful the dire circumstances I witnessed in the dream hadn't been real all along. Every moment of that dream seemed like borrowed time. Even though the animals didn't notice me, I felt it was only a matter of time before they did, and for this reason, I was restless throughout the ordeal.

When I was finally transported back into realm of the present, I knew right away something ominous was pending to happen, and it was going to be at a Zoo. But the million dollar question was, how was it going to play out?

News Article of the Dream (1):

Tiger kills San Francisco Zoo patron, injures two others
By Steve Rubenstein, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, December 26, 2007

FULL COVERAGE

(12-25) 21:12 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- One zoo visitor was mauled to death and two others severely injured when a Siberian tiger escaped from its grotto at the San Francisco Zoo early Christmas evening and went on a bloody rampage in front of terrified zoo patrons.

The tiger - the same animal that chewed a keeper's arm during an attack last December - was shot to death outside a zoo cafe by four officers who managed to distract the animal as it mauled one of its victims.

The horrifying violence, which occurred just after the zoo's 5 p.m. closing time while dozens of patrons were still inside, began when the tiger somehow managed to gain its liberty from the grotto.

The animal, a 4-year-old tiger named Tatiana, did not leave the grotto through its only door, zookeepers said. The grotto is surrounded by a 15-foot-wide moat and a 20-foot-high wall.

"We don't know how it was able to get out," said Robert Jenkins, director of animal care at the zoo. "The tiger should not have been able to jump (out). This is the first thing we will be investigating."

Police officers refused to rule out carelessness or criminal activity as possible means for the tiger's escape.

The two injured men, ages 19 and 23, both underwent surgery Tuesday evening. The man who died, also thought to be in his 20s, was found near the tiger grotto, police said.

After the initial attack, the tiger proceeded about 300 yards to the Terrace Cafe restaurant, where it assaulted the other two victims with its claws and teeth.

Alerted by frantic calls from the zoo, four officers arrived in two police cars and tracked the tiger to the cafe. The tiger was sitting next to one victim but, when the officers arrived, it resumed its attack.

"The tiger jumped back on top," police Sgt. Steve Mannina said. "The victim had blood on his face."

The animal, distracted by the four officers and by the flashing red lights of the patrol cars, abandoned its victim and advanced toward the officers, Mannina said. The officers all fired their .40-caliber handguns, striking the tiger an unknown number of times.

John Brown, an emergency room physician at San Francisco General Hospital, said the two injured men suffered deep bites and claw cuts to their heads and upper bodies. They were able to talk about the attack, although they were not thoroughly questioned Tuesday evening. The men could be released from the hospital as early as today, officials said.

The zoo will be closed today out of respect for the unnamed victims. At daybreak, officers and firefighters will comb the 1,000-acre zoo grounds. Officials said they could not rule out the possibility that there were other victims, even though there were no initial reports of missing persons.

In the hours after the attack, the scene at the zoo was surreal, with shotgun-toting officers marching outside the south entrance. Firefighters stood atop tall ladders and shined bright arc lights into the treetops and foliage, searching for victims and animals. Zookeepers who had been evacuated from the grounds stood together in small groups outside the gate, quietly consoling one another and weeping.

Despite earlier warnings, the other zoo tigers never escaped into the public areas, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith.

At the time of Tuesday's attack, the zoo had two Siberian and three Sumatran tigers. According to the zoo, more humans die each year in tiger attacks than in attacks by any other animal, although such incidents are still rare because tigers normally avoid people.

On Dec. 22, 2006, the 350-pound Tatiana chewed the flesh off Lori Komejan's arm during a public feeding demonstration. A state investigation later ruled that the zoo was at fault for the attack because of the way the cages were configured.

A June report from the state Division of Occupation Safety and Health blamed the San Francisco Zoo for the 2006 attack, stating that the tiger cages were configured in a way that made it possible for Tatiana to bite the zookeeper's arm. The state found that Komejan was attacked after she reached through a drain trough to retrieve an item near the tiger's side of the cage. The tiger reached under the cage bars and grabbed her right arm, but the zookeeper tried to push the tiger away using her other arm, the report found.

Both of her arms were under the cage at that point and her face was pressed against the cage bars, according to the report. Another employee grabbed a long-handled squeegee and hit the tiger in the head until it released the injured zookeeper.

The public feedings at the Lion House resumed in September after about $250,000 in safety upgrades.

News Article of the Dream (2):

Tiger attack victim arrested as theft suspect

Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer

Chronicle photo by Paul Chinn

News Link

(03-28) 16:09 PDT San Leandro - -- The younger of two brothers who survived a Christmas Day tiger attack at the San Francisco Zoo was arrested on suspicion of trying to steal two video game controllers from a San Leandro store, police said Friday.

Paul Dhaliwal, 19, hid two Nintendo Wii controllers in his pants at the Target store at the Bayfair Center mall about 6:30 p.m. Thursday, San Leandro police Lt. Tom Overton said.

Store security officer Michael Marucut, dressed in plain clothes, told authorities that he witnessed the theft and followed Dhaliwal as he walked past the cash registers, "never making an attempt to pay for the concealed items," the police report said.

Once Dhaliwal walked outside the store, Marucut and several other security officials confronted him. Dhaliwal "was uncooperative and immediately began to resist," Marucut wrote in a statement included in the police report.

Dhaliwal was subdued and placed under citizen's arrest. Officer Warren DeGuzman arrived and took Dhaliwal into custody. After he was read his rights, Dhaliwal "admitted to selecting and concealing the merchandise," DeGuzman wrote in his report.

But Dhaliwal said he never left the store with the items, the police report said.

Dhaliwal, whose scars from the tiger attack are still visible on his head, was arrested for petty theft, Overton said. Dhaliwal posted $1,500 bail shortly before 3 p.m. Friday, police said.

The incident at Target happened on the same day the brothers filed a claim against the city of San Francisco, seeking unspecified monetary damages in connection with the tiger attack. A message left for Paul Dhaliwal wasn't returned.

The alleged shoplifting incident isn't his first brush with the law.

In February, both he and his brother, Kulbir Dhaliwal, 24, who also survived the tiger attack, were in court to seek the personnel records of San Jose officers who arrested them after they scuffled with police on Sept. 7.

But at a hearing Friday, the defense withdrew that motion, said Stuart Scott, a Santa Clara County deputy district attorney. An attorney for Paul Dhaliwal did not return a call for comment.

After that incident, both men were charged with public intoxication and resisting arrest, both misdemeanors. Paul Dhaliwal was also charged with misdemeanor battery on a police officer.

The brothers were arrested after they allegedly refused to cooperate with officers who reported seeing them chase two men down the street, according to police reports.

Paul Dhaliwal is accused of hitting an officer in the chest with his forearm as the officer tried to restrain him, leading to the battery charge. He stopped resisting only when an officer held a stun gun to his neck and threatened to use it, according to a police report.

Kulbir Dhaliwal cursed at officers while kicking the security partition in a squad car, forcing police to pull him out and put him in leg restraints, the police report states.

In February, Paul Dhaliwal pleaded not guilty to marijuana possession after being cited Dec. 21 for allegedly having 1.8 grams of pot in his pocket while in the parking lot of a Milpitas hotel.

He had been placed on probation three days before that incident after pleading no contest to felony reckless driving and other charges for leading police on a 140 mph chase on April 28, court records show.