Watch: Elephant Charges Safari Truck Full of Tourists in South Africa
Have you ever been on a safari? Many people dream of someday getting to go on one to see lions, rhinoceros, elephants, or their favorite animal in the wild. ABC News a shocking video on Thursday, March 21st of what happened when an angry male elephant approached a vehicle full of tourists.
The video was filmed in South Africa's Pilanesberg National Park and shows a truck full of frightened tourists in a truck that's being charged by the elephant. Tourists in the truck ducked between seats as the incident occurred, and the safari guide can be heard screaming at the elephant and trying to back the truck away from him.
ABC News shared in the caption that Hendry Blom, a bystander who recorded the incident, said: "We were definitely scared, especially for the people in the truck because we thought they might die." Fortunately, no one was injured during the harrowing ordeal. Mankwe Game Trackers told ABC News one family had been offered counseling after being left "extremely rattled." Everybody agreed with commenter @Robert Clark when he said, "With ease, their strength is scary!"
Warning Signs of an Angry Elephant
What happened to make this elephant so upset? Did the truck get too close to him? Was he trying to keep the truck from getting too close to his herd or family? We may never know.
Safarikzn.com out of South Africa shared some of the things that an elephant will do when they are uncomfortable. What's interesting about these signs is that if you rewatch the video, you'll see that the elephant does almost all of them. When irritated, elephants will rock on one foot, which may look like they're kicking dust up. They'll also hold their ears out longer than a flap (which is something they do to regulate their body temperature.) What they are doing when they do this is showing you how big they are and warning you of their size.
It's normal for elephants to shake their head a time or two, but continually shaking it is another warning, as is holding its tail out stiffly. Trumpeting is also a sign, and he was doing it loudly!
Safarikzn.com also says to NEVER ride towards elephants because their personal space is VERY important. They also say, "If you are stupid enough to continue your approach or ignore the warnings, you will be in the animals FIGHT zone. Not a good place to be… RED ZONE! It's usually followed by a full charge and certain contact, injury or death." That's exactly what happened in this video!
While safaris normally go pretty peacefully and tourists don't get charged by wild animals, it's always important to remember that it's safety first...always. I'm sure this is an adventure that these tourists will never forget!
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