Footage has surfaced showing the harrowing moments last Saturday as a massive bull elephant chased and flipped a safari vehicle in Zambia, causing the death of a U.S. tourist.
The accompanying footage, shared by Andrew Cash, shows the elephant closing on the vehicle, which had run out of road moments before the attack. As tourists express alarm, a guide repeatedly yells “Hey!” in an attempt to ward off the elephant.
Details are slow to emerge, but Wilderness Destinations issued a statement in the aftermath of the incident in Kafue National Park. It reads, in part:
“Wilderness can confirm that an 80-year-old female American guest was tragically killed by a bull elephant while on a game drive at its Kafue National Park destination in Zambia on Saturday.
“Another female guest was also injured in this incident, when an aggressive bull elephant charged the vehicle carrying six guests and a guide who were on a game drive from Lufupa Camp. The injured guest was taken to a private medical facility in South Africa while the other four guests received treatment for minor injuries.”
Elephant attacks are rare, but the docile-looking animals are unpredictable and should always be treated with respect.
Wilderness Destinations expressed “deepest condolences to the family of the guest who died” and addressed remarks on social media regarding why the vehicle had stopped:
“Our guides are all extremely well trained and experienced, but sadly in this instance the terrain and vegetation was such that the guide’s route became blocked and he could not move the vehicle out of harm’s way quickly enough.”
A helicopter was involved in the rescue of the injured tourists. Several agencies are involved in the investigation.
–Elephant image is generic