The Dallas Zoo reopened on Tuesday after it sustained “significant” storm damage over the weekend.
“Due to a strong storm this afternoon, we sustained significant tree damage, have debris in the Zoo and have a zoo-wide power outage,” zoo officials stated on Sunday, per NBC 5. “Thankfully, teams have confirmed habitats are intact, animals are safe and no guest or staff injuries have been reported.”
The zoo kept its doors closed to the public on Labor Day so that work crews could clean up the grounds.
As previously reported in The Dallas Express, a line of severe thunderstorms with high winds swept through Dallas Sunday afternoon, leaving behind downed trees and disrupted power lines.
The National Weather Service warned that the storms were “capable of gusts near 60-65 mph and quarter-sized hail.”
Work crews at the zoo certainly had their work cut out for them, with tree limbs and debris scattered all over the property.
Zoo officials posted a picture on Twitter of a very large piece of tree that had fallen into a habitat.
In a separate tweet, it was noted that incoming guests on Tuesday “may notice a few areas in the Zoo barricaded off for ongoing work.”
Zoo officials and animals alike were likely hoping for rain the past few months, just not so much so fast.
Outdoor attractions across North Texas have been impacted by the record-breaking high temperatures that plagued the state all summer. Like Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, the Dallas Zoo saw fewer guests overall in recent months, according to zoo officials.
Still, recent storms are clearly causing their own problems.
This past weekend’s round of rainfall and power outages follows in the aftermath of flash floods across the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area last month that led Gov. Greg Abbott to issue a week-long disaster declaration, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.