American woman killed in lion attack in South African park

[webfact]

American woman killed in lion attack in South African park
CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA, Associated Press

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A lion killed an American woman and injured a man driving through a private wildlife park in Johannesburg on Monday, a park official said.

The attack occurred at around 2:30 p.m. when a lioness approached the passenger side of the vehicle as the woman took photos and then lunged, said Scott Simpson, assistant operations manager at the Lion Park.

"They had their windows all the way down, which is strictly against policy," he said. "The lion bit the lady through the window." The driver then tried to punch the lion and was scratched by the animal.

Park staff quickly chased the lion away from the car and an ambulance arrived promptly. "Unfortunately, she did pass away," said Simpson, adding that the U.S. Embassy had been informed.

Earlier, the U.S. Embassy confirmed that it had received reports of an "incident involving a U.S. citizen" at the Lion Park and was ready to offer "any assistance possible."

The Lion Park is a popular destination for tourists who can drive in their own vehicles through large enclosures where lions roam freely. Visitors can also pet lion cubs in smaller pens or have supervised walks through cheetah enclosures.

"Nowhere can you get closer to a pride of lions and other animals and still be completely safe," says the park's website.

The park would review its policies, said Simpson, but he believes existing safety measures are "more than adequate," if visitors follow them. Big signs advise visitors to keep their car windows up and drivers entering the park are also handed a paper with the same warning, he said.

Earlier this year, South African media reported that an Australian tourist was bitten by a lion when he was driving in the park with his windows open. In April, a teenager was attacked by a cheetah when he tried to cut through the park on his bicycle, reported local outlet, News24.
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Associated Press writers Lynsey Chutel and Courtney Quirin contributed to this report.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-06-02

[Dannyboy666]

And the Darwin Award of the Day Goes Too... A Yank Too.

Edited June 2, 2015 by Dannyboy666

[circusman]

'the woman took photos and then lunged'. Why did she lunge ?

[Suradit69]

And I suppose the lion will be put down for not behaving as if it were in a petting zoo.

And the Darwin Award of the Day Goes Too... A Yank Too.

You obviously haven't read the story posted today about the woman in UK put in jail/gaol for being noisy while having sex... apparently after repeated warnings.

Lots of stupid to be found everywhere.

Edited June 2, 2015 by Suradit69

[rijb]

And the Darwin Award of the Day Goes Too... A Yank Too.

Don't be jealous. You're more than qualified to win one.

[fred Kubasa]

Walking, riding, cycling thru an area where lions live ? I don't even hang around household cats.

[Blindside]

*Removed posts edited out*

Checking the local papers in SA it is being reported that the lion will not be put down.

However might be moved to another enclosure which does not have public access.

[rijb]

I've got something you can 'yank'... Yellowstone bison attack seriously injures Australian man, second park tourist hurt in 3 weeks

Edited June 3, 2015 by rijb

[Scott]

Some off-topic posts and replies have been removed. A person has died. Some of the remarks do not belong in this thread.

[Soutpeel]

I've got something you can 'yank'... Yellowstone bison attack seriously injures Australian man, second park tourist hurt in 3 weeks

Another bison on the barbie perhaps ?

[Soutpeel]

And I suppose the lion will be put down for not behaving as if it were in a petting zoo.

And the Darwin Award of the Day Goes Too... A Yank Too.

You obviously haven't read the story posted today about the woman in UK put in jail/gaol for being noisy while having sex... apparently after repeated warnings.

Lots of stupid to be found everywhere.

No they won't, I used to live close to this lion park and its well run place, the whole area is fully fenced, incidents like this have been going on for years due to dumb <deleted> not following the posted rules (in about 25 languages) when you drive through the park

people get it in their heads that these lions are tame, they are not

"Locals" have jumped the fence to take a short cut and have never been seen again

Any members living in the JHB area around the mid 90,s will remember the "Chinese take away" incident in the same park, a group of half wit Chinese tourists kept getting out the car trying to take photos with either a female or male in the background of the photo,

they were warned numerous times by the rangers in the park, and yes you guessed it, Chinese take away on the menu for the lions that day, think they got 2 of them

[Aforek]

The most stupid was this man ( attention : warning graphic ) don't look if you are sensitive

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AASzNAIT_Ps

[Usernames]

Apparently, according to CNN, this young woman was going there to "save the animals." I don't know if she carried the same attitude, but others engaged in similar affairs tend to anthropomorphize dangerous animals. Not to speak of her, in particular, but you put these people together with the privileged background they come from, their feeling that they are good and on a mission to save nature, and they just don't think anything will happen to them. They are special. So they can roll down the window on a safari van and no wild beast will do anything but wag its tail in gratitude. Poor, silly girl, I think.