Levan was five years old when he fell into a gorilla enclosure at the Jersey Zoo.
A Man Once Protected By A Gorilla In A Zoo Shares His Story
As the world weighs in on the tragic killing of the gorilla, Harambe at the Cincinnati Zoo after a three-year-old boy fell into the gorilla's enclosure, we hear from one man who had something similar happen in 1986. He shares his story and the happy ending.
Levan Merritt
Jambo The Gorilla
The boy came face to face with Jambo the gorilla.
He said as scary as it was, he learned so much from the experience.
Jambo was protective and offered compassion during a terrifying experience.
The Video Brought It All Back
For Levan, watching the Cincinnati zoo video brought him back to his experience.
Levan said he felt for the child and for the gorilla.
He also said that after watching the video in full, and seeing how quickly the gorilla dragged the child to the water, he said the authorities made the right call by killing him.
Gorillas Don't Know Their Own Power
As caring as they might be, one can never really assume a gorilla's strength won't kill a small child just in patting its head.
Levan noted that even though he believes the gorilla probably wasn't intending to hurt the child, one can't assume an animal in captivity will be gentle with a baby.
Watch The Full Accident Below
Jambo the gorilla became a household name and known as a hero when he protected a little five-year-old boy, named Levan Merritt, after the boy fell into the gorilla's enclosure nearly 30 years ago.
The whole thing was captured on video and as an adult, Levan can now very much relate to what happened with the child at the Cincinnati zoo earlier this year.
