A father has spoken out after his son was attacked by two hyenas late last Saturday evening while camping at the Cape Vidal nature reserve in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park in St Lucia in KwaZulu-Natal.
The incident sparked renewed concern over safety protocols in wild campsites.
Returned to their tents
Nicolas Hohls, 27, and his family had been attending a social gathering at the popular reserve when the attack occurred after they returned to their tents.
“He suffered injuries to his left leg and face,” said his father, Colin Hohls, who rushed to his son’s aid when he heard the commotion.
“The hyenas only backed off when I intervened.”
‘No time to wait’
Colin Hohls said there was no time to wait for paramedics due to the remote location of the reserve.
“I bundled him into my double-cab and drove straight to the (Netcare The Bay) hospital,” he recalled.
“Thankfully, his skull wasn’t fractured, but he underwent plastic surgery on his face, leg, and ankle. He’s recovering well.”
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, the entity managing the reserve, confirmed it was aware of the incident.
In a statement, Ezemvelo urged all campers to properly secure tents and food items at night and reiterated that the reserve is situated in a wild environment, where animals are known to move through campsites.
How wary are you of staying in ‘open’ campsites?
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