MELBOURNE, Fla. – Emergency calls obtained by News 6 detail what happened at Brevard Zoo on Tuesday when a toddler fell into a rhino's exhibit.
A dispatcher can be heard saying that a 1-year-old fell into a rhino pit and was pinned up against the wall but was conscious.
Zoo officials said the child was participating in a hands-on educational experience at the zoo's rhinoceros exhibit when she fell between steel poles and into the exhibit.
Lori Becker was nearby when the incident happened.
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"I was actually kayaking around the rhino exhibit when it happened," she said.
Zoogoers Agnes Torres and her husband said the accident sparked chaos among visitors and confusion about how it occurred.
"They have barriers to protect them, so I don't know how this happened," Torres said.
The child was airlifted to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando for treatment. First responders transported the child's mother to an area hospital after receiving reports that she fractured her arm following the incident.
The zoo's popular Rhinoceros Encounter exhibit has been in operation since 2009 without incident. Zoo officials decided to suspend the exhibit until a full investigation into the incident has been completed.
The child's condition is not clear.