CINCINNATI -- Luke Rhynolds said he saw "a lot of blood" and heard people screaming after a man was stabbed in the throat near the train at the Cincinnati Zoo Saturday afternoon.
The man was stabbed during an altercation involving two other men at about 4 p.m., Cincinnati Zoo Communications Director Michelle Curley said. The two men left the zoo after the stabbing, Curley said.
Rhynolds said the man who was stabbed appeared to be OK.
“He was just sitting up. He said, 'Tend to me however you feel you need to.' I feel like the guy who got it and bleeding was trying to console the people around him more than he needed to be more consoled,” Rhynolds said.
Sgt. Eric Franz said the man has serious injuries, but they are not life threatening. The man was transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. His identity has not been released, and police do not released information about a possible suspect.
Anna Simensen said she was leaving the train area when she saw the man being wheeled out on a gurney.
“(He had) a towel or something wrapped around his neck tightly. He had some bruising on his face. His shirt had been cut off,” Simensen said.
Corey Bramel said he saw security guards digging through the garbage cans.
“They were digging in there, and found a black pocket knife and pulled it out,” Bramel said.
Police responded to the scene within minutes, Curley said.
“It was pretty calm. Security handled it pretty good I thought,” Bramel said.
Franz said police have several descriptions of a possible suspect, and they are working on getting a solid description.
“Right now there are too many ... they are interviewing all the witnesses. It’s going to take a brief period to get a good, accurate description,” Franz said.
The zoo did not close after the incident, and there were no evacuations of any kind.
The investigation is ongoing, and officers ask anyone with information to call police.
