DULUTH, Minn. (WCCO) — Security issues have the Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth under scrutiny after about a dozen animals died in recent flood.

The Duluth News Tribune reports an alarm sounded three hours before zoo officials knew they had a serious problem. According to protocol, the security company told the animal management director of the alarm about midnight.

Protocol then calls for the security company to contact police, but officials say officers never came to the zoo.

It’s unknown if those three hours could’ve saved the animals, but zoo staffers say they’ve been lobbying for 24-hour security for years and say it would’ve meant a quicker response to that emergency.