Circus-Goer Enters Bathroom, Finds Herself Two Feet from Escaped Tiger
A woman visiting the circus in Salina, Kansas, had a too-close encounter with an escaped tiger in the most unlikely of places: The bathroom.
The large cat had briefly evaded its handlers after a 7 PM show at the Isis Shrine Circus.
Though staffers quickly sealed off the area, a second entrance leading to the ladies room was missed during a security sweep, and that's exactly where the tiger ended up.
And so did Jenna Krehbiel, who was experiencing her very first trip to the circus.
"You don't expect to go in a bathroom door, have it shut behind you and see a tiger walking toward you," she told the Salina Journal.
Krehbiel said that despite being only two feet away from the animal, she was able to calmly and silently turn around and exit the bathroom.
"I'm always on alert," said Krehbiel, who is a social worker by trade. "And it was easy to walk out; that's how I am trained."
Bicentennial Center manager Chris Bird confirm that the incident took place, and called it "a scary, surreal moment." He added: "I am glad no one was hurt or injured."
As for Krehbiel, she says she's done with circuses for a while and will be sticking with zoos, "where I know [the animals] won't get loose."
