An American woman was attacked and killed by a lion in one of RSA's private lion parks. Just read it on MS homepage.

Mike

So !

What's the big deal.

http://abcnews.go.com/Internat...ca/story?id=31445850

If these fluff brained bimbos don't have sense enough to come in out of the rain, don't expect sympathy from me.

The only people dumber that the tourists are the tour operators who trundle them out into harms way with intent to gain MONEY for excitement.

Lion's do what they do. Stop provoking them - let them alone.

Hesus Christo it doesn't take a space scientist to figure out the consequences.
.

Lion's gotta do what a lion's gotta do

Amen to that !

Riding in a tourist vehicle with the windows rolled down. Just asking for it! Like the tourists I have seen at Kruger who get out of their cars or do the same thing with their windows down despite the regulations. And then they or their estates want to do the American thing and sue!

Some cold hearts here. When a hunter or PH is killed when hunting lions or elephants or buffalo there is an outpouring of sympathy and sometimes even cash. When it's a non-hunter why the outpouring of venom? She didn't go out looking for trouble...it sounds like trouble just found her.

quote:

Originally posted by ForrestB:
Some cold hearts here. When a hunter or PH is killed when hunting lions or elephants or buffalo there is an outpouring of sympathy and sometimes even cash. When it's a non-hunter why the outpouring of venom? She didn't go out looking for trouble...it sounds like trouble just found her.

+ 1. She may well have been negligent and stupid, but she is still someone's family member.

I nearly got tagged by a lioness while trying to get a land rover out of a pig hole. I was obviously in the bush and outside the vehicle at the time but can see how this lady got nabbed. Bad news.

"JOHANNESBURG – 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." Tragic yes, but totally preventable. Had they followed the rules and regulations it never would have happened. There's a difference between hunting dangerous game and knowing the risks and being in a car and told repeatedly to keep the windows rolled up. I have hunted the Bubye Valley
Conservancy many times and lion are there everywhere, both day and night, and the utmost of precautions are taken when both in and out of the vehicle, at camp and at the skinning shed. Same can be said for hunting the Zambezi Valley.

What I find interesting is that the posts on AR are much more sympathetic toward the woman and her family than the posts to the article itself. All about "thinning the herd" there. Not even a "too bad" to be found.
I'm sure that shows something but I'm not sure what.
kh

+1 to what Forrest said. Thanks, Forrest.

quote:

Originally posted by ForrestB:
Some cold hearts here. When a hunter or PH is killed when hunting lions or elephants or buffalo there is an outpouring of sympathy and sometimes even cash. When it's a non-hunter why the outpouring of venom? She didn't go out looking for trouble...it sounds like trouble just found her.

Absolutely agree. She didn't follow the rules and it cost her her life, but the guide bears much of the blame, he knew to keep the windows up. Such comments as those above are crass and say more about the posters than the victim. Shameful.

Many of these sorts of attacks occur because the vast majority are truly ignorant of the potential dangers. They were raised on Disney, Elsa the lion, The Bear and hundreds of other shows that portray wildlife as other sentient beings that just want to be friends.

Bears beating up tourists, elephant, bison and elk goring and trampling photographers in the national parks.......... happens all around the world. In the end it boils down to their ignorance of the true nature of the beast and just how bloody fast they can move.

Sadly, there is no way to re-educate these people and the TV shows and specials with professional wildlife photographers in open land cruisers filming lions and elephant at close quarters are as abundant today as they ever were.

In the end these wildlife experts do both the wildlife they claim to love and their audience a tremendous disservice.

Some of you guys sound just like the antis who rant when the last PH was killed. Regardless of who it is, death is not something to jab at. Their family members are in mourning. I thought it tasteless when the last PH was killed and the antis were making postings of how good it was that he was killed by the elephant he was hunting. I think it equally tasteless folks here would jab at a young 22 year old woman who died a horrible and frightening death. She perhaps didn't know the dangers but her guide who allowed the windows down surely did.
Cal

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:
Some of you guys sound just like the antis who rant when the last PH was killed. Regardless of who it is, death is not something to jab at. Their family members are in mourning. I thought it tasteless when the last PH was killed and the antis were making postings of how good it was that he was killed by the elephant he was hunting. I think it equally tasteless folks here would jab at a young 22 year old woman who died a horrible and frightening death. She perhaps didn't know the dangers but her guide who allowed the windows down surely did.
Cal

.............................................................. I agree!

Hunting parties travel around in open hunting vehicles like this


But a woman & her guide is castigated on AR for not having the window up in their vehicle.

quote:

Some of you guys sound just like the antis who rant when the last PH was killed. Regardless of who it is, death is not something to jab at. Their family members are in mourning. I thought it tasteless when the last PH was killed and the antis were making postings of how good it was that he was killed by the elephant he was hunting. I think it equally tasteless folks here would jab at a young 22 year old woman who died a horrible and frightening death. She perhaps didn't know the dangers but her guide who allowed the windows down surely did.Cal

Good post Cal.
She did something extremely foolish and she paid the ultimate price for it.
I can't count the foolish things I've done that could have easily cost me my life, thankfully I survived.
May she rest in peace.

So some of you folks think that a woman deserves to die because a lion managed to get her inside her vehicle ... ????

What the hell ???? !!!!

It's sad that a young woman lost her life, and her family lost a daughter.

It's not surprising. My own daughter of the same age watches National Geographic television. She loves watching the great film of the animals and hates that I hunt, although I think that the fact that I hunt has injected a little bit of sanity into her analysis.

Have you watched those shows? I have. I actually like to watch for the scenery and great photography. The problem is they suggest that the animals share human values to try to make a tear jerker story out of a lioness that loses a cub or lion that is killed by buffalo.

They only seem to care about predators and elephants, however.

To a young person watching these shows, it is easy to understand how they could conclude that all animals are our friends and we have nothing to fear from them, only the reverse.

If she had Obeyed the Rules laid down by the Park ,she would still be alive, its as sinple as that ! what is the matter with some people ?

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:
Some of you guys sound just like the antis who rant when the last PH was killed. Regardless of who it is, death is not something to jab at. Their family members are in mourning. I thought it tasteless when the last PH was killed and the antis were making postings of how good it was that he was killed by the elephant he was hunting. I think it equally tasteless folks here would jab at a young 22 year old woman who died a horrible and frightening death. She perhaps didn't know the dangers but her guide who allowed the windows down surely did.
Cal

100 %

We have been on a number of photo safaris, where we were very close to both lions and elephants.

I have seen some very idiotic behavior from other tourists towards them, and I am very surprised not more attacks occur.

We were recently traveling back to Orlando from south Florida. We decided to stop at Lion Country Safari near West Palm Beach. There are constantly signs warning to keep windows closed and stay in the vehicles. Yet we see some idiot hanging out the sun roof taking pictures. These are the same type,of people who think elephants are harmless and gentle.

There's an old saying: "You can't cure stupid."

Well, it's not entirely true.

For tourists, PHs or anyone else, nature will cure stupid very fast.

Live and learn, or live and don't learn.

But if it's the latter, and dangerous game is involved, then be prepared to die.

Everyone can make a mistake. I did. Hanging leopard baits along a korongo I got out of the vehicle that was a rolling abattoir. Focusing on finding the proper tree, I left my rifle in the gari. A rookie mistake and I knew better.

Simba got my attention quickly. They had a kill in the korongo. Fortunately, it didn't end badly.

I feel for this young lady and her family who likely didn't know any better.

It's the operator/guide who is responsible for protecting the clueless tourists. However, the typical Jeep Jockey with their flowing locks, open shirt, and bangle bracelets are generally more interested in impressing the women and are only marginally more intelligent around dangerous game.

This was a senseless encounter and the blame rests on the operator/guide.

Death is tragic, regardless of the circumstances. I feel bad for her, and her family.

It is sad for both her and her family . It is made more so by the fact that this was totally avoidable .

No one deserve to get mauled by a lion regardsless of fault and who to blame.
What horrible moments this girl went through in her mind and body.

Speaking to tourguiding in lion parks. I often seen(TV) people drive in open vehicles and the animals do nothing. But somehow an open window/door is an invitation to big big problems. Enigma!.

However in India driving in a tigerpark and in openvehicle can be dangerous..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqzkEYf6YEU

We the guides are responsible for our clients ,here first mistake is TO DONT CARRY A GUN .

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
We have been on a number of photo safaris, where we were very close to both lions and elephants.

I have seen some very idiotic behavior from other tourists towards them, and I am very surprised not more attacks occur.

Agreed. And idiotic behaviour from guides trying to impress young ladies in the party is also more common than it should be and I find this the more worrying of the two.

quote:

Originally posted by juanpozzi:
We the guides are responsible for our clients ,here first mistake is TO DONT CARRY A GUN .

+1, Juan. That makes absolutely no sense to me and I would not accompany a PH or guide who thought they did not need to be armed. Whether it is due to show-boating, laziness or stupidity it's no good.

I understand it as she was in her own vehicle driven by another of her party. They just didn't follow the rules.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
It is sad for both her and her family . It is made more so by the fact that this was totally avoidable .

Indeed it is sad, and regrettable. I am sure she did not fully appreciate the potential for danger that existed.

Obviously through exposure the lion in these parks have lost their fear of man - and have made the association between a human in/on a vehicle and food.

There is a video out there of a lioness opening a car door with her teeth, which is pretty clever. So lock your doors too.

Milo and Juan: I must respectfully disagree with you both. The FIRST mistake was made when both the Guide and the client consciously chose to not follow the regulations by having all windows rolled up. (This in spite of big signs, and each receiving a personal written handout.) The SECOND mistake was made when the Guide did not enforce the windows up regulation. The THIRD mistake was made when the Guide failed to carry a firearm. Sorry that it happened, but their lack of respect for the regulations and their own agency caused the tragic outcome.

The "park" is more a zoo. It is filled with hand reared lions which are placed in various camps.they get fed rotten chicken and restaurant scraps. Nothing "wild" about it. It is only a few miles from the city of Johannesburg and right next to a squatter camp. No weapons are allowed in there and the guide was probably only a "tourism guide" or rather a driver showing tourists the sights and sounds of the CITY. There was a video on YouTube not too long ago where a lion in the same "park" opened the door of the vehicle with her mouth. A whilst ago some Japanese tourist also got mauled when he got out to take pictures. The "zoo" should be an embarrassment to the people of Johannesburg. But the owners make insane amounts of money from foreign tourists thinking they are experiencing "Africa". So the gates will stay open

Several years ago Ganyana told me that a 14 year old girl was taken by a cocodrile from a canoe in the ZAmbeziafter that all the boat guides carry at least44mags .I hope now the train and permit the guides to carry a big bore revolverOf course shooting accurately and fast a big revolver isnt easy .

Why are there so many posts talking about a GUIDE?

There is no guide!! It's a park where you drive in, in your own car and they give you a piece of paper accompanied by numerous signs all over the place that you shouldn't open doors or roll down windows.

Is anyone reading the article?

To clarify, I am not for killing the stupid.

Even though that would solve many of the world's problems, including traffic jams, and would eventually lead to eternal peace on earth.

Rather, I am saying that regardless of what I or anyone else may wish or want, nature holds a contrary view regarding such matters.

News article posted by Saeed confirms the young lady was with a 36 year old guide from S.A.