Lions hit by 4x4
Staff Reporter



Wildlife and health officials are investigating after an ambulance ploughed into a pride of lions in the Imfolozi game reserve yesterday.

Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife spokesman Jeff Gaisford said rangers had received a report from a motorist that an ambulance had crashed into the lions at 7am on the road through the centre of the reserve.

At least one of the lions went under the wheels of the 4x4 health department ambulance, which carried on driving.

Lion, cheetah and wild dogs have been killed on the road over the past four years since it was upgraded to tarmac.

Rangers found no carcasses or obvious signs of blood but were still investigating.


The road has an 80km/h speed limit in the day and a 60km/h limit at night and it is believed that 500 speeding tickets have been issued so far this year.

When wildlife staff visited the provincial ambulance depot at Hlabisa, the supervisor said he was not aware of the incident or whether any patients or ambulance personnel had been injured. - Staff Reporter



This article was originally published on page 6 of Cape Argus on May 14, 2010