NC Zoo arborist killed during rescue drill identified

The identity of 38-year-old Branson Joe Langley was announced when the North Carolina Zoological Society, a support group for the park, announced that it has established a trust fund for Langley's daughter, Maggie, 9.

"The Maggie Fund” will be used to further her education and help her achieve all the dreams that her father wished for her," the group said in a written statement released Friday.

According to an online obituary for Langley, his funeral was scheduled for Sunday at Sandy Creek Baptist Church. He was a 2000 graduate of Eastern Randolph High School and a 2002 Magna Cum Laude graduate of Sandhills Community College, according to the obituary.

Langley died after he fell several fee while hanging in a tree, authorities said. He had been participating in a mock rescue exercise,

Zoo officials said law enforcement and state safety regulators are investigating the accident, and grief counselors were called to the park to work with other zoo employees.

"The staff is pulling together as a family to represent how much we care for each other as a family," said Patricia Simmons, the zoo's director and chief executive officer.

The state Department of Labor confirmed to WRAL News that Langley was participating in an aerial rescue drill when he fell 20 to 30 feet from a tree and died at the scene.

"The Zoo is working closely with investigators to determine details of the incident, which was not related to any of the Zoo’s animals," a spokesman for the North Carolina Zoo said.

The state's Occupational Safety and Health Division has opened a probe into the matter, officials said.

The zoo, located at 4401 Zoo Parkway and south of the city, posted a message about the fatal accident on its website, alerting guests about the zoo's decision to close at 2 p.m. Thursday, three hours early.

Simmons said the zoo will resume its normal operating hours Friday.

Jasmine Williams said she brought her mother, who was visiting from Indiana, to the zoo for a visit. She said she was sad to hear about the worker's death.

"Hopefully, we're able to make it back before my parents have to leave on Sunday," she said.

Guests who were at the zoo but who had to leave early were given tickets for free admission for another day.

The new attraction replaced the zoo's 4D theater.

According to the tourist attraction's website, it sits on 2,600 acres in Randolph County. The facility sits on 500 developed acres and is ranked as the world's largest natural habitat zoo, according to the attraction's website.

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The agency is managed by the state's Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.