Reports: 8 dead, lions and tigers on loose in Georgia flooding
At least eight people died and a number of others were missing following flooding that destroyed enclosures at the zoo in Georgia's capital of Tbilisi, leaving animals including lions and tigers on the loose, it was reported Sunday.
Some of the animals that escaped — which also include bears and wolves — were captured or killed, and the search for those still on the loose continued early Sunday, the news agency Civil.ge. reported.
It said that heavy rainfall started late Saturday and turned the Vere, normally a small stream, into a "raging river."
City mayor David Narmania told journalists that eight people died and 10 were missing. Three zoo workers were among the dead, the Associated Press reported.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/06/14/georgia-flooding-deaths/71206678/
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I've actually spent time in Tbilisi - of all the places in the world. It's a fascinating city, an amazing combination of ancient and modern, more Middle Eastern than anything else. And I can't see them having a whole lot of resources to deal with this. My heart breaks for these poor animals - and the residents, too. 
9th century! Tough to even imagine... But then there were modern buildings, too, often side by side with the ancient ones. I was there in the '80s, back when it was Soviet Georgia, still part of the USSR. I went there with my grandmother as part of a peace group. Our itinerary originally included Kiev, but the terrible accident in Chernobyl made that impossible, so it was replaced by Tbilisi, very fortunate for us. And there was definitely no love lost between the Georgians and the Russians, though they were perfectly fine to us. I was amazed to see statues of Stalin still standing there - but he was Georgian and was still a hero to them. I can't imagine being able to return the way things are now, so I am enormously grateful that I had the chance... 
(before they turned to the dark side) and wherever we could travel to see for ourselves is now going to be very different going forward.
Wars, Climate Change and lack of interest in Historical Preservation...all hitting those of us who expected differently.
It is very sad....and hard to deal with. Some would say: "Life Moves On...Get Over It." I guess that's the pragmatic view...yet I still can't accept that rationale.
