Tiny-tots reciting nursery rhymes at a primary school situated¹ a stone's throw from a local zoo in Rudong county, Jiangsu province, had no idea what was coming for them on Wednesday morning.

It was a lion.

The local fire brigade averted² a possible catastrophe³ when they managed to recapture a two-year-old lion after the ferocious⁴ animal escaped from its cage in the county's People's Park and jumped into a canal in a bid to swim across to freedom, and a possible bite.

A park official, requesting anonymity⁵, said the lion broke out of its confines as its "feeder failed to lock the cage properly" on Wednesday morning.

The feeder admitted he was "distracted by a rat that had entered the lion's cage" and left the gate open for a few seconds.

The lion sprinted⁶ down to the end of the park driveway, with unprepared security guards on its tail, plunged⁷ into a canal and started swimming.

"It was early in the morning, and luckily there weren't many visitors around," said a staff surnamed Zhou, adding it was "a scary sight of a huge lion running free".

The local fire brigade rushed to the scene and evacuated⁸ nearby residents and school students from the area.

Firemen shot the lion with tranquilizing darts⁹ while it was still trying to paddle across the canal before pulling it out of the water with the help of a rope.

Park officials said the lion was put back into its cage soon, and visitors strolled around the park as usual yesterday.

The lion's feeder was let off with a warning after being questioned for his carelessness.

Questions:

1. In which province did the drama take place?

2. What did firemen do before capturing the lion?

3. What was the reason for the lapse¹⁰ in security that allowed the lion to break free of its cage?

Answers:

1. Jiangsu.

2. They shot the lion with tranquilizing darts.

3. The feeder was trying to apprehend¹¹ a rat in its cage and accidentally momentarily left the cage open allowing the lion to escape.