The grief-stricken mother of a zookeeper killed by a Sumatran tiger has spoken of her love for her daughter and the heartbreak her death has inflicted on her family.
Samantha Kudeweh, a mum of two young children, died after being attacked by 11-year-old Oz in Hamilton Zoo's tiger enclosure onSeptember 20.
Three weeks on, her mother, Judy Stephens, has told the Herald on Sunday of her daughter's love for her family - husband and zoo co-worker Richard Kudeweh and their two children, Billy, 9, and 3-year-old Sage - and the animals she cared for at the zoo.
"Her two children just adored her," Stephens said.
"The four of them were just such a lovely family unit and they were just about to build a house so there are lots of decisions to make.
"Richard has done his best to help the children understand what has happened. Billy understands but Sage is only 3. She understands her mummy won't be coming back. She so loved her mother, like every little girl does.
"Sometimes it is [harder] to accept death because you have an individual with so much passion and so much to give and places to go and things to do. Her children won't know those qualities."
The family have vowed to keep her memory alive. "The world is going to miss out and her family are going to miss out, but we will do our best to make sure she is never forgotten," she said.
Samantha Kudeweh, seen here as a young child. Photo / Supplied
Stephens said her daughter dreamed of being a zookeeper from an early age.
"She just forged her pathway, set her sights and off she went. She was always reading and I guess the books inspired her.
"She was passionate, she was a conservationist and she used her role at the zoo to push those ideas. She was very self-contained and observant and just knew where she wanted to go. She was a remarkable young woman."
The family backed the zoo's decision not to euthanise Oz.
Oz's arrival at the zoo in 2006, and the subsequent two cubs he sired, were highlights of her daughter's 20-year career.
Samantha Kudeweh, with her husband Richard on their wedding day. Photo / Supplied
"It [euthanising Oz] would have been a blot on her memory," Stephens said. "A wild animal is a wild animal and [Oz] was just being a wild animal. Somehow Samantha was there and vulnerable."
The Ministry of Primary Industries, WorkSafe NZ and the Hamilton City Council - which owns the zoo - are investigating 43-year-old Kudeweh's death. Police have passed their findings to the coroner.
Stephens said her daughter followed protocol by the book and was under no illusions about wild animals. "She should have been able to go to work and be safe. We can't understand what happened because she was very careful."
She now wanted to know how what should have been an ordinary day at work cost her daughter her life.
"There should have been protocols in place that would not allow this to arise. The keepers are always careful so I can't imagine what happened. A fundamental part of zoo work is being safe from the animals.
"I understand and hope that answers will come out of the investigations once they are completed."
The wait for answers has been part of a nightmarish rollercoaster ride for Stephens - one that started with a fateful phone call from her son-in-law.
Samantha Kudeweh's family. Photo / Supplied
"I thought it had to be a nightmare. All I could think was stop, stop, I wanted him to stop but he had to tell me."
Council chief executive Richard Briggs yesterday said the local body was striving to keep Kudeweh's family up to date with its investigation, which is due to finish within two weeks. It was not appropriate to release details until investigations were over, he said.
The council will also independently review the zoo and Richard Kudeweh will be asked for his input, Briggs said.
"That work won't be specific to the tiger management or Sam's death, it's a broader look at the whole zoo operation. That's common for larger organisations to get an independent view of parts of their business."
The zoo is exploring options for a conservation fund in Kudeweh's memory.
A givealittle page, Samantha Kudeweh Family Trust, set up to support her two young children and husband, has raised more than $28,000. givealittle.co.nz/cause/kudewehfamilytrust/
