A spokesman at Arkansas Children's Hospital says a young child is in critical condition after falling into a jaguar exhibit at the Little Rock Zoo.
Hospital spokesman Dan McFadden said in a news release Friday that the child's guardian has asked that the child's name and other information not be released.
Zoo spokeswoman Susan Altrui says staff members used a fire extinguisher to keep the jaguars away from the child after the incident Friday morning. The child was pulled to safety by a zoo employee who lowered a ladder into the exhibit.
A Little Rock Police spokesman said the child was suffering from puncture wounds, but that it wasn't immediately clear if that was from the animals.
Officials have not yet said how the toddler fell into the exhibit. Little Rock City Manager Bruce Moore says zoo employees followed proper procedures in the incident and that a full investigation will be conducted.
