Number 10 Chantal Beyer In January of 2013, Johannesburg student
Chantal Beyer was severely gored by a white rhino while posing for a photo during a safari tour.
24-year-old Beyer was visiting a South African nature reserve with her boyfriend and had gotten
out of the vehicle to look at the animals. Their guide, Alex Richter, reportedly told the couple it
was safe to stand closer to the rhinos. It’s also been reported that Richter had given the beasts
food as a way of encouraging them to approach the tourists. A photo was taken of the couple,
standing only a few feet away from two white rhinos, posing with their backs turned to them.
Moments after it was taken, one of the massive beasts charged Beyer and gored her from behind.
The rhino inflicted severe injuries with its horn, resulting in broken ribs and a collapsed lung.
Beyer was rushed to an intensive care unit where, fortunately, doctors managed to stabilize her.
It’s still unclear what disciplinary actions, if any were taken against the tour guide.
Number 9 Bhupendra & Jagruthi Raval In 2015, an Indian couple was trampled to death by
a wild elephant during a tour of a remote forest in Central Kerala. The victims, both in their
early 50s, were part of an 8-member group, from Gujarat, that had travelled to the Gavi region.
At some point during a guided trek through the forest, Bhupendra Raval and his wife, Jagruthi,
encountered three elephants. The tourists took their cameras out and started photographing the
animals. It’s believed that one of the giant beasts became enraged by the camera’s flash.
It charged the couple and their guide. Unfortunately, Bhupendra and Jagruthi couldn’t
get out of the way in time. They were viciously mauled and trampled to death by the wild elephant.
The guide, whose name wasn’t released, also sustained injuries in the attack,
but they weren’t described as life-threatening. Number 8 Curtis Plumb
In 2015, a British safari guide in South Africa became the victim of a ferocious leopard attack.
While giving a tour in Krueger National Park, 38-year-old Curtis Plumb had stopped the open-top
vehicle so that tourists could look at the big cat. Plumb peered out over the side of the
vehicle, trying to find the beast, but failed to notice that the leopard was alongside him.
The feline reached inside the vehicle and pounced on Plumb’s arm. It started to savagely
bite and claw into the man’s limb. Some of the tourists, who were seated behind the guide,
tried to help him by striking the leopard with their cameras. The occupants of another vehicle
tried hitting it with the car door but the feline maintained its grip. Plumb reversed the car and
managed to free himself but the beast attacked again. It jumped on the hood, trying the reach
the tourists, but the guide hit the brakes and the feline fell. Once more, it charged the front
of the vehicle. Seeing the relentlessness of the leopard and fearing for the tourists’ safety, the
guide chose to run it over. The animal sustained severe injuries and was later put down. Plumb was
taken to a local hospital and, after undergoing surgery, his condition was pronounced as stable.
Number 7 Patrick Fourgeaud In August of 2015, a couple was attacked
by a lion while sleeping in their tent during an African safari. 64-year-old Patrick Fourgeaud
and his wife, Brigitte, were several nights into their safari at the Ruaha National Park,
in Tanzania. The woman awoke to find the lion sniffing at her back. It then clamped
its powerful jaws on Patrick’s arm and tried to drag him out of the tent. Others intervened and
managed to scare off the massive feline. Patrick suffered extensive injuries to his arm, for which
he had to undergo multiple surgeries. A large chunk of his triceps had been torn clean off,
leaving behind a gaping bite mark. The couple also struggled with mental health problems
as a result of their ordeal. In the incident’s aftermath, the Fourgeauds sued the UK-based safari
company for not doing enough to ensure they’d be safe from night time animal attacks. The company
fought the claim for several years, but eventually settled for a payout towards the couple.
Number 6 Zhou & Zhao On July the 23rd of 2016, one woman was killed
and her daughter was severely injured at Badaling Wildlife World, in Beijing, China. The 6,000-acre
reserve offered tours but also allowed visitors to drive themselves. One cardinal rule was that they
never get out of the car. Believing they’d driven past the area where the tigers were kept,
a young woman left her vehicle and walked over to the driver’s side. The woman, identified as
Zhao by her first name, was suddenly attacked by a massive Siberian tiger. The beast quickly
brought her down and started dragging her away. It was then that the driver and Zhao’s mother, Zhou,
rushed to help her. Local media reported that Zhou was gruesomely mauled by the tiger while trying
to save her daughter. Badaling staff rapidly intervened and rescued the other family members,
but Zhou’s injuries were fatal. Zhao survived, but had sustained severe lacerations to her neck.
An investigation cleared the park of any wrongdoing but the family subsequently
sued the reserve for roughly $170,000, alleging that it was partially responsible.
Number 5 Kristen Yaldor In 2018, a 37-year-old woman
was attacked by a hippo while on a canoe safari on the Zambezi River, in Zimbabwe. After one of
the guides saw hippos on the right side of the river, the guests were instructed to paddle left,
away from the dangerous beasts. Florida woman Kristen Yaldor was at the front of a two-person
canoe while her husband, Ryan, was at the back. The couple had started to paddle away,
when a hippo emerged underneath the canoe and capsized it. Ryan was thrown towards land and
quickly swam to shore. When he turned around, he saw that the beast had
Kristen’s right leg in its enormous mouth. The woman punched the hippo several times in the face
and it released her. Ryan and the head guide pulled her to the river bank, where first aid was
administered. The woman was airlifted to a local clinic and then transferred to Johannesburg where
she had surgeries to mend her broken femur and to remove the dead tissue surrounding her leg wound.
Number 4 Swiss Tourist In 2019, at South Africa’s Kruger National Park,
a Swiss tourist was left battling for his life in the aftermath of a car accident involving
a giraffe. The unnamed elderly man and his wife were driving inside a specialized Ford
Ranger safari camper. On the same road, coming from the other way, was a minibus
transferring over a dozen tourists to the Letaba Rest Camp gaming lodge.
The minibus then collided with a fully grown giraffe, but it’s unclear if the vehicle was
speeding or not. The animal stood roughly 18 feet tall and weighed around 1,650 pounds. The impact
dismantled the front of the minibus and knocked the large animal into the path
of the Swiss tourist’s safari camper. The giraffe was thus fatally struck a second time, landing on
the camper’s roof and crushing it. The elderly man sustained critical injuries. He was airlifted to a
local clinic and then transferred to a hospital in Johannesburg, where he was placed in life support.
The tourist’s wife as well as a few passengers from the minibus also suffered minor injuries
while the giraffe was killed by the double impact. Number 3 Quinn Swales
In 2015, safari tour guide Quinn Swales was hailed as a hero for defending his group against
a lion attack. 40-year-old Swales was leading a walking safari at the Hwange National Park,
in western Zimbabwe. Tourists were taking photos of a group of six lions,
as they were standing under a tree. Some of the cubs approached them. This, according to
a local policewoman, is what caused the group to suddenly be targeted by a large male named Nxaha.
The animal, distinguishable by its black mane, had been collared by Oxford University researchers
for a study on lion behavior. Nxaha was known as dangerous and unpredictable by park staff.
The muscular feline was a prolific hunter, known for even taking down young elephants.
Nxaha approached the tourists but Swales stepped in front of the group, trying to use his extensive
experience to prevent an attack. He shouted the animal’s name and the feline, initially, ran away.
However, Nxaha then doubled back, pounced on Swales and started clawing and biting him. The
attack left him with deep lacerations to his chest and neck but none of the tourists in his group
were harmed, due to his heroic intervention. The safari guide was airlifted to a hospital,
where he later passed away from his wounds. Today's topic was requested by Sergio Meza.
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in the comments section below Number 2 Elephant Kills Tourist
In 2018, an unnamed German tourist was trampled to death by an elephant at the Mana Pools National
Park, in northern Zimbabwe. The 49-year-old woman was part of a group of visitors who’d seen a herd,
upon entering the park. When it comes to the number of elephants across this territory,
Zimbabwe is the second-most populous country in Africa. The beasts are known to sometimes
come into conflict with the local human farmers, meaning they’re more likely to exhibit defensive
behavior. One source reports that the German tourist had left the vehicle and didn’t
maintain a safe distance while photographing the animals. One of the beasts broke from the
herd and attacked her. The woman was brutally trampled by the elephant and succumbed to her
injuries later that day. Number 1 Carol Kirken
In 2017, Michigan woman Carol Kirken was killed by a hippo during a family vacation to Tanzania.
Kirken, a philanthropist and beloved member of her community in Rochester Hills, was on an
annual safari trip. Shortly before the attack, the 75-year-old had posted photos to her social media
of the various animals she’d encountered in the African wilderness. On August the 5th,
her last Facebook upload read that she’d seen a “massive migration”. That same day,
Kirken was charged by a hippopotamus. Her family didn’t disclose any further details
surrounding the attack but did mention that the woman passed away quickly in her son’s arms.
Thanks for watching! Would you rather explore the African wilderness without a guide
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