N.C. Zoo to remain closed through Monday

This week's lousy weather is forcing the N.C. Zoo in Asheboro to close its doors through Monday.

Because of a number of fallen trees throughout the park after Friday's winter storm and the prediction for even more frozen precipitation Friday evening, the zoo will remain closed through Monday, March 10, according to a press release. It also is closed today because of the weather.

According to the release, safety concerns will prevent staff from starting to remove fallen trees until Sunday. After that, it will take at least two days and maybe longer to clear service roads, walkways and animal exhibits of debris, it said. There have been no animal-related issues so far because of the weather.

Zoo staff were told to leave work by 2 p.m., today, because of the dangerous conditions and potential for more tree damage. 

In other zoo and adorable news, the zoo welcomed three cougar kittens on Monday from the Oregon Zoo. The kittens, about two months old, will be under a 30-day quarantine, which is mandatory for all new animals. Once they are ready for public view, they'll be in the cougar exhibit in the zoo's Cypress Swamp complex.

They traveled to North Carolina thanks to LightHawk, a volunteer-based environmental aviation group which provides free flights to help protect land, water and wildlife. The kittens became orphans after a hunter killed their mother in Oregon in January, according to a press release.

The zoo is in Asheboro about 90 minutes from Raleigh.

Check out the cougar kittens being kittens in this zoo video: