Zookeepers in Berlin have been praised for saving the life of a woman mauled by a polar bear after she jumped into its enclosure.

The 32-year-old, named in local press reports as Mandy K, suffered serious bite injuries to her arms and legs after the animal grabbed hold of her, but keepers who rushed to the scene managed to push it away before it could inflict a bit that might have broken her spine.

Knut, the polar bear cub who became world famous after it was abandoned by its mother in 2006, was in the enclosure along with two further bears when the woman jumped in, but was not involved in the attack, a zoo spokeswoman said.

Hundreds of visitors watched in horror as the woman, who is thought to be mentally disturbed, scaled a fence, a wall and a line of hedges to get into the enclosure as the animals were being fed, at around 10.30am on Friday.

She dropped into the moat and swam towards the bear, which clambered down rocks into the water and grabbed hold of her. It raked her with its claws and bit her several times before keepers could push it away. She was initially treated for bite wounds at the scene before being taken to hospital.

Heiner Klös, the zoo biologist, said: “Our alarm system worked, otherwise it would have been a bad outcome for the bear as well.”

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