One aardvark has died and four meerkats are missing after a fire at the ZSL London Zoo early Saturday, NBC News reported.
The blaze tore through the zoo's Animal Adventure area, and children's petting zoo, officials said in a statement on the zoo's website.
The zoo said the other animals were being closely monitored by its vets but appeared to not have been affected by the blaze, which broke out around 6 a.m. local time (1 a.m. ET) and was under control some three hours later.
Security guards, along with zookeepers who live on site, first responded to the fire, alerting authorities and moving the animals to safe locations within their enclosures, the zoo said. A number of staff members were also treated for smoke inhalation and shock.
