MELBOURNE, Fla. – A newly released call to 911 details the moment when a 2-year-old Florida girl fell into a rhino pit at Brevard Zoo on Tuesday.
"We had a child fall off the African platform into the rhino exhibit," a woman told dispatchers shortly after the incident took place.
[READ: Rhino injures 2-year-old girl | Family describes 'trying day']
The woman said she believed the fall was accidental, and that the child was conscious, breathing and alert after being pulled from the pit.
When asked how far the girl fell, the woman said it was hard to tell how tall the the platform was, but she believed it was probably more than 10 feet high and not taller than two stories.
The girl and her family were in the administrative area of the zoo when the call was made, the woman told dispatchers.
Zoo officials said the child was participating in a hands-on educational experience at the zoo's rhinoceros exhibit when she fell between steel poles and into the exhibit.
The girl was taken to a hospital for treatment Tuesday afternoon.
Officials at the zoo on Florida's Space Coast said a rhino's snout touched the girl before she was retrieved in a matter of seconds.
The girl's family issued a statement about the incident.
"(Tuesday) has been a trying day for our family," the girl's father said. "We’re thankful to everyone who has reached out with their concerns. Our daughter is in good care at Arnold Palmer Hospital and is doing well. My wife was also treated for her injury and has been released from the hospital. At this time, we ask for privacy as we focus on our daughter’s recovery.”
Zoo officials said the welfare of the animals was never compromised and the rhinos won't be punished in any way.
The Rhino Encounters exhibit and other exhibits involving "premium" animal experiences have been suspended while zoo officials review safety protocol.
Zoos must follow a set of guidelines for animal enclosures by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Read those policies here.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is investigating the incident.