ASHEBORO, N.C. -- The tragedy at the Conservators Center in Burlington, North Carolina is leading the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro to review its safety procedures with zookeepers and staff.

• Three days ago, a lion killed an intern at the Conservators Center in Burlington.
• Less than an hour and a half drive away, the North Carolina Zoo is taking this tragedy as a reminder to review its practices.
• The North Carolina Zoo staff will meet several times over the next couple of weeks to make sure zookeepers are doing everything that they can do keep everyone safe.

For North Carolina Zoo visitors like Mai Ideshita, the big animals like lions are a breathtaking sight.

"I want to draw one! Because I have my book and a pencil,” Ideshita said. “There's a female one right there because she doesn't have a big mane."

But it's an exhibit like this that can turn deadly fast, if the right safety procedures are not followed.

Just three days ago, a lion killed an intern at the Conservators Center in Burlington. Less than an hour and a half drive away, the North Carolina Zoo is taking this tragedy as a reminder to review its practices.

"This incident that happened at the Conservators Center is just a reminder of just how dangerous our profession really can be,” said NC Zoo’s curator of mammals, Jennifer Ireland. “It's a perfect opportunity for us to revisit all of our safety protocols and make sure that we're doing everything we can do to be as safe as we can be."

Ireland started off at the NC Zoo as a lion keeper. She let Spectrum News ride along with her through the zoo to look at the many gates and barriers between dangerous animals and humans.

"This is traumatic for keepers whether or not they were involved in it when they learn that one of their colleagues in the profession has lost their life,” Ireland said.

The North Carolina Zoo sticks to the rules of two. Between a keeper and a lion, there's usually at least two doors and there's always at least two keepers.

"They need to make sure all of the appropriate locks are locked and they need to make sure all the appropriate doors are closed. Again, they don't have necessarily two people stand next to each other and look at them together. One person will look at it and then another person will come along behind and look at it, so that they're double checking everything making sure everything is safe,” Ireland explained.

She also said there will not be anyone without a great deal of training anywhere near dangerous or deadly animals.

"We're not a zoo where zookeepers just come in fresh from college and work at. All of the zookeepers that we employ have to have experience elsewhere before they come here. So they're not completely green,” Ireland explained. “They've already had all those learning curves and stuff at other places. But once you get hired it doesn't mean you can automatically go out and start working with the dangerous animals and start shifting them around."

Ireland said each animal area has different training protocols and procedures that will qualify a zookeeper to verify security and safety.

For Ideshita, she feels safe with the barriers sitting between her and the lions.

"Yeah! But I can still see them, so it's good,” Ideshita said.

Ireland said the North Carolina Zoo staff will meet several times over the next couple of weeks to make sure zookeepers are doing everything that they can do keep everyone safe. She said a huge part of prevention is education.