Medical records of tiger victim inappropriately accessed, ambulance service says

Medical records relating to a man mauled to death by a tiger were either inappropriately accessed or attempts were made to do so, an ambulance service has said.

Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust said it has launched an investigation after two members of staff accessed or attempted to access medical information about the death of William Chapman at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, as the attraction opened to the public for the first time since the tragedy on Saturday.

The trust said in a statement: “The trust has identified an information governance concern in relation to this tragic incident at Yorkshire Wildlife Park and William’s family has been informed of our ongoing investigation into this.

“We believe there may have been two instances involving two members of staff accessing or attempting to access incident/medical information following this incident without a legitimate reason to do so.

“We take the confidentiality and security of patient information extremely seriously and have robust systems in place to protect information, and this concern has been identified as a result of our proactive audits.”

The statement continued: “The trust has commenced an investigation to establish the full circumstances surrounding these potential breaches and the actions of these individuals.

“We have also reported this matter to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and we will continue to keep William’s family informed as our investigation progresses.”

Mr Chapman, 24, died at the park in Doncaster after scaling two fences at the attraction’s Land of the Tigers enclosure, an inquest has heard.

A coroner has been told how he had a diagnosis of schizophrenia, had suffered previous bouts of psychosis and his family had expressed “a number of concerns” in relation to his contact with mental health services.

On Friday, the park opened its doors for the first time since the tragedy, including to Land of the Tigers, where the fatal incident happened.

Early visitors reported that the five-year-old male Siberian tiger involved, called Altai, was out in one of the enclosures, eating a meal while lying on top of a wooden platform.

A handful of visitors watched him from the raised wooden walkway, waiting for him to face them for photographs as a substantial number of park staff looked on.

The park was only sparsely attended, despite the autumn sunshine.

The walkway is level with the top of the 15ft-high fence which surrounds the tigers, with an extra section stretching away from visitors for about another metre.

Signs on the fences warn it is electrified.

Families taking photographs of Altai said it was right that the park had reopened.

One woman said: “It was just terrible what happened but it’s got to open again at some point. I don’t see how it helps anyone to keep the park shut.

“People have just come to see a beautiful animal.

“I don’t think anyone here has come just because of what happened. A lot of people here today are regulars.”

An inquest opening hearing on Thursday was told that Mr Chapman was a self-employed online trader who was living in Doncaster at the time of his death.

He was under adult mental health services in Doncaster but was “highly functioning and independent with no care requirements”.

A coroner heard that the Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation trust had launched an investigation.

An initial post-mortem examination found that Mr Chapman had died from multiple traumatic injuries after his encounter with the tiger.

The inquest heard he attended the park at about 1.30pm on Saturday, climbed over two fences and entered the tiger enclosure.

The coroner said Mr Chapman’s family “were finding things incredibly difficult” and had decided not to attend the hearing, but would be updated afterwards by her staff.

City of Doncaster Council, which is responsible for licensing the park, is carrying out a health and safety investigation and said it would share the outcome with the coroner, the hearing was told.

In a previous statement on social media, the wildlife park said “many, many people” had contacted them about Altai, the Amur tiger involved in the incident, and it confirmed he is “safe and well” and will not be euthanised.

On Thursday, the park confirmed that it will reopen on Friday and said Altai’s “ongoing welfare at YWP remains a priority of our experienced animal care team”.

The statement went on to say: “We continue to assist South Yorkshire Police and other relevant agencies with their ongoing inquiries into the circumstances of this tragic incident.

“As we welcome visitors back, we would ask everyone to be understanding and respectful towards our staff team, who have shown tremendous professionalism and dedication during an exceptionally difficult time.

“We are providing specialist trauma support and ongoing care for those affected.

“As inquiries remain ongoing, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further on circumstances at this time.

“We would like to thank everyone for their patience, understanding and support during this difficult period, and we look forward to welcoming visitors back to the park.”

Altai arrived at YWP in 2025 from a Norwegian zoo, as part of a global conservation project.

He lives with the female, Tschuna, who came to Doncaster in 2013.

Land of the Tigers is a two-acre enclosure which features woods and a waterfall pool.

The two tigers are usually kept in separate enclosures.

On Friday, Tschuna was in the enclosure where Mr Chapman was attacked, with Altai in the next door area.

Both are flanked by a 300-metre long walkway which gives visitors an elevated view of the Siberian tigers, which are also known as Amur tigers and are the world’s largest cats.