SUV Flipped by Elephant in KZN, Family Make Daring Escape From Vehicle

• A family from Mtunzini in KwaZulu-Natal experienced trauma during a self-guided game drive in iSimangaliso Wetland Park
• An elephant used its tusks to push the family's vehicle onto its side while all four people were still inside
• The family first tried to use their hooter to ward off the elephant, but when that didn't work they decide to attempt an escape from the SUV

DURBAN - A family from Mtunzini in KwaZulu-Natal experienced trauma during a self-guided game drive in iSimangaliso Wetland Park when an elephant approached their SUV and flipped the vehicle over.

Inside the SUV were a man, a woman and their two children. The elephant used its tusks to push the family's vehicle onto its side while all four people were still inside. Another family who was close to the same spot filmed the incident in a now-viral video.

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Officials respond to the incident

The family first tried to use their hooter to ward off the elephant, but when that didn't work they decide to attempt an escape from the SUV. With the assistance of park officials they were rescued from the overturned vehicle, The Witness reports.

Bheki Manzini, a spokesperson for the park, expressed their gratitude that no one lost their life due to the incident and that the elephant who flipped the vehicle will be inspected in a further investigation, according to TimesLIVE.

"Such incidents are not a common occurrence in iSimangaliso we caution our visitors to always remain vigilant and maintain a 50m distance from wildlife, particularly the big five, as human-wildlife conflicts do sometimes happen since animals are wild and roam freely in the park," Manzini said.

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South Africans react to the incident

@NkosiJeromeZung asked:

"Question: Would car insurance pay?"

@Siphelele44 remarked:

"Must've been very traumatic for them."

@clasicman007 said:

"Wow!"

@LLOYDNEDOHE shared:

"The detail is in how you “encounter” an elephant and still stay for niceties."

Limpopo car crash: 17 burnt to death on N1 after a head-on collision

Speaking of car accidents, Briefly News previously reported that on 11 January a Toyota SUV experienced a head-on collision with a minibus taxi on the N1 near Mookgopong in Limpopo. This resulted in the taxi catching fire and 17 people dying in the blaze.

On 13 January the authorities began to identify the deceased. However, this is a challenging process as many of those who lost their lives were burnt beyond recognition and are in varying stages of decomposition.

The investigation will be aided by DNA samples from family members of the victims. The names of the deceased are known, due to a list that was filled out before the taxi departed, in keeping with Covid-19 protocols.

Source: Briefly News