Warning issued over escaped zoo animals in Georgia – video

Residents in the Georgian capital Tbilisi have been told to stay indoors after extreme flooding killed 12 people and allowed wild animals to escape from the city's zoo.

"We're being told on television not to go out because of the dangerous ruins and the wild animals walking about," a parliamentary official told the Daily Telegraph. "A lion was captured in the yard of a maternity unit in the centre."

At least 24 people are thought to be missing and the death toll is expected to rise. Thousands have been left without power and coffins were washed out of the ground after the Vere River burst its banks, with authorities estimating that the damage could exceed $10m (£6.4m).

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A hippo was seen wandering through one of the city's main squares and was eventually cornered after being shot with a tranquiliser gun. Footage shows locals leading the disorientated animal through the flooded streets. Some of the other animals have been recaptured, but it remains unclear how many are still at large.

Mzia Sharashidze, a spokesperson for the Tbilisi Zoo said that "a large part of the zoo is simply non-existent. It was turned into a hellish whirlpool," The Times reports.

Authorities have been killing animals they believe pose an immediate risk to the public, including a rare white lion. "Carcasses of wild animals that have been shot dead litter the streets and tangled heaps of wreckage scar a large area around Tbilisi's zoo," says The Guardian.

Sharashidze said at least 20 wolves, eight lions and a number of tigers, jaguars and hyenas had been shot dead or were still missing. "Only three of our 17 penguins were saved," she added.

None of the human deaths are thought to be connected to the animals and zoo director Zurab Gurielidze accused the emergency services of killing the animals unnecessarily. "If a predator attacked a person then it’s understandable but there are cases that will need to be investigated," he said.