SHANGHAI, July 31 -- A LION was shot dead after killing its keeper and chasing visitors at a zoo in Jiangsu Province yesterday, according to a Nanjing-based newspaper.

The attack occurred about 2:30pm when the keeper, in his 60s, was bringing food to the lion's cage at a zoo in Xinyi City, Jiangsu, Jinling Evening News said today.

The lion attacked and killed the man before anyone could realize what was happening. The lion then got out of the cage, the keeper had forgotten to lock the door, and began chasing people, the report said.

A number of visitors were watching animal performances at that time, but the story didn't elaborate if the lion was among the performers.

About 20 minutes later, armed police arrived. The lion was shot dead with four bullets.

No other injuries were reported.

Several other animal attacks have resulted in deaths at zoos this year.

On May 20, a tiger attacked and killed one of its keepers at a zoo in Sanya City, Hainan Province. The victim was a 42-year-old native of Thailand.

In February, a six-year-old girl was killed by a tiger at a zoo in Yunnan Province when she was waiting to take a photo with it.