The survivor of a tiger attack in Beijing Badaling Safari World reportedly filed a lawsuit against the park on Tuesday, demanding more than 1.54 million yuan ($223,506) in compensation for her injuries and her mother's death, local media reported.
The survivor Zhao Li (pseudonym) said she and her father filed the case with a court in Yanqing district and it has accepted the case, the Beijing Youth Daily reported Tuesday.
However, Zhao, 32, said she was trying to get her case handled by higher level court as she claims the Yanqing government has a penchant for local protectionism, The Beijing News reported Tuesday.
Tigers in the Yanqing district safari park attacked Zhao and her mother after they violated the park's rules and got out of their car while driving through the animals' enclosure on July 23.
Zhao has suffered severe physical injury and great psychological trauma, for which she believes the safari park should take full responsibility, the Beijing Times reported.
A safari park staff member surnamed Cao told The Beijing News on Thursday that they will wait for the legal verdict as they have repeatedly responded that the cause of the incident was the pair's violation of the park's rules.
Rescue staff from the park arrived and drove away the tiger 20 minutes after the big cats began their fatal attack, the Beijing Times reported.
Reports of this litigation triggered discussion online, with some defending the park and encouraging it to sue Zhao for losses incurred while the park was shut for three months after the incident, while some insist the park was responsible as it should take care of visitors in all circumstances.
