Cambridgeshire zoo reopens crocodile enclosure after boy’s serious injury

Johnsons of Old Hurst reopened its crocodile enclosure nine days after a three-year-old boy from Cambridgeshire was seriously injured inside it. On 27 June, Johnsons of Old Hurst said its “whole site will be fully open,” including the crocodile display.

The boy was visiting the Old Hurst zoo with his family on 18 June when he ended up inside the enclosure and suffered serious injuries. Staff at the family-run site rescued him before he was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge. Police said he was initially in a critical condition and later improved to stable. Cambridgeshire Police arrested a 30-year-old man from Norfolk on suspicion of attempted murder, and officers said the man and the child are not known to each other.

The enclosure sits inside the zoo’s Tropical House, a converted barn that houses several crocodile species, including Nile crocodiles, broad-snouted caiman and American alligators. Johnsons of Old Hurst says the crocodile house was built in 2009 and that the site has been involved with crocodiles for about two decades. The zoo says it has more than 100 animals.

The Tropical House had been closed after the incident, with the zoo saying it would remain shut “out of respect to the family.”

Cambridge University Hospitals referred itself to the Information Commissioner’s Office after allegations that around 40 staff members accessed the boy’s medical records. Huntingdon MP Ben Obese-Jecty said he was aware of the incident and urged people not to speculate while it remained a live criminal investigation. Chris Newman of the National Centre for Reptile Welfare said he had spoken to the Johnson family and they were “very distraught.”