GORILLA Escapes TOKYO ZOO - Emergency Drill A zoo in Japan has held an emergency drill to prepare for a disaster scenario in which animals manage to break free from enclosures. The exercise included dressing up a volunteer as a gorilla which manages to escape. The costume-wearing employee ran through the zoo before being overwhelmed by other workers with nets and "sedated". Natsumi Uno, who donned the costume, said: "In our work, there may be times when we need to capture an animal, but we would never be the ones being captured. The gorilla is eventually 'recaptured' "So I tried to feel what an animal might feel and realised that when they're on the run, they would be scared. That's how I felt." More than 150 staff members were joined by members of police and fire departments during the drill at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo. Toshimitsu Doi, the zoo's director, said the drill was successful. He said: "It's important to take these opportunities to remember what needs to be done." Ueno Zoo has had escape scares in the past, the most recent being a monkey that escaped from its enclosure in 2010. Drills of this nature happen every two years and have previously involved the simulated escapes of a rhinoceros and a tiger. TOKYO - Staff at a Japanese zoo chased a keeper in a gorilla costume on Thursday as part of an annual escape drill to brush up their skills in the event of a real breakout. Visitors to Ueno Zoo in Tokyo watched as the pretend primate was coralled by dozens of staff wielding nets, before being subdued with a mock stun gun and bundled onto a nearby pick-up truck. Zookeeper Natsumi Uno, who was inside the gorilla suit, said it had been nice to be able to switch places for the day. "In my job, we sometimes have the chance to catch an animal, but never to get caught," she said. "When the other keepers chased me, I could really understand the animal's feelings. "We need to think about people's safety, but also about the safety of the animal we are catching. That is why this drill is important." Past simulations at Tokyo's city-run zoos have featured zebras, rhinos, lions, and orangutans making a break for freedom. — Agence France-Presse