PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG\/WECP) – Just four days after a fire left 7 lemurs dead last week, Zooworld is back open to the public.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s heartbreaking, it\u2019s devastating, I always looked forward to coming and seeing them, my daughter and I would talk to them and they would talk back to us, so we\u2019re gonna miss that,\u201d said Pam Pasman, a Zooworld season passholder.<\/p>\n
On a Facebook post<\/a>, ZooWorld said that although the zoo is looking a little different, recovery is in progress.<\/p>\n Flowers, damaged structures, and a sense of hope were visible at ZooWorld on its reopening day.<\/p>\n Season passholders Pam Pasman and her son, Toby, decided to visit and honor the animals lost.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was very comforting actually, I expected it to be more tearful, but the staff are just really upbeat, thanking everybody for coming back today, and they\u2019re making progress,\u201d said Pam.<\/p>\n Other guests like Gisel and Lucinda Mill visited from Tallahassee with their families. They had no idea about the fire.<\/p>\n \u201cI was looking forward to seeing the monkeys, but to hear that the lemurs passed away was pretty sad. I had no idea there was a fire here,\u201d said Gisel.<\/p>\n According to Zooworld<\/a>, Pluto, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune, Mercury and Venus were the seven lemurs that died from smoke inhalation as a result of an electrical fire in their night house. <\/p>\n The fire is still under investigation by the Florida Fire Marshal, but preliminary findings show that the fire started during near-freezing overnight temperatures in a heating unit. Authorities say it wasn\u2019t human error.<\/p>\n There were three survivors- one lemur and two binturongs: Uranus, Baloo, and Mulan.<\/p>\n Zooworld says the animals are strong and recovering quickly. The binturongs are showing no sign of trauma.<\/p>\n \u201cIt must be a tough day for them, but you know it\u2019s good to have a business reopen, especially in this economy, and for them to be able to open in… that\u2019s like 3 days? 3-4 days? and they\u2019re back open, so that\u2019s good for them, honestly, yeah, that\u2019s a huge blessing,\u201d said Gisel.<\/p>\n Pam\u2019s favorites were the lemurs. She has personal memories with them from before the tragic fire.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me personally, I had done an encounter with the lemurs, the first time we came here for my birthday, and the one that was this color actually got up on my shoulder and he was giving me kisses on my face so that was really special, so I wanted one of these to commemorate them,\u201d said Pam, as she was holding a lemur stuffed animal.<\/p>\n On a Facebook post, Zooworld said they\u2019re looking forward to rebuilding and that they\u2019re able to move forward thanks to everyone\u2019s prayers and support.<\/p>\n (RELATED: Some ZooWorld animals did not survive morning fire<\/a>)<\/p>\n To stay up to date on all the latest news as it develops, follow WJHG on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a> and X<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n Have a news tip or see an error that needs correction? Email news@wjhg.com<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n Keep up with all the biggest headlines on the WJHG News app<\/a>, and check out what\u2019s happening outside using the WJHG Weather app<\/a>.<\/p>\n Copyright 2026 WJHG. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n