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A rhinoceros attacked a married couple working as zookeepers in Austria on Tuesday, killing the woman and seriously injuring the man as he attempted to save her, authorities said. The zoo director told reporters that the 33-year-old woman was assigned that day to put insect repellent on the rhino's body because they are very sensitive to insect bites. The 30-year-old female rhino, Jeti, attacked the keeper though it was not clear why, Austria's APA news agency cited the zoo director as saying. "Maybe there was some kind of irritation."
The woman suffered severe chest trauma, and police said she "succumbed to her injuries at the scene of the accident." The other zookeeper, a 34-year-old Austrian citizen who was feeding other animals at the time, was also attacked and fractured his leg when he tried to chase the rhino away from his wife. The man, a trained animal keeper, has worked at the zoo since 2008, and his wife, a certified animal keeper, since 2014.