- Curtis Plumb had his arm bitten by the leopard in South Africa safari park
- Tour guide punched predator and had to pull his arm free from its jaws
- Body of the big cat is now being tested to uncover if it suffered with rabies
- Park official says Plumb 'accidentally reversed onto animal'
A British safari tour guide attacked by a leopard now faces an anxious wait to discover if it has given him rabies.
MailOnline
has learnt that the body of the cat, which was euthanized shortly after
the terrifying incident in Kruger National Park, is being tested for
the disease.
Curtis
Plumb, a guide of Nhongon Safari Tours, sustained deep cuts abd bites -
and had to pull his arm out of the predator's jaws - when the injured
predator tried to jump into a truck full of tourists.
Scroll down for video
This is the moment safari guide Curtis Plumb was attacked by a leopard as it tried to get into the tour truck
Park officials believe the tiger had been in a fight with another animal before it approached the truck of tourists
The leopard tried in vain to cling on to the truck as the guide made a quick escape through the safari park
Evasive action was taken to secure the safety of the tourists and the leopard was ran over in the aftermath
The leopard struggled back to its feet after being hit by the tourist truck. its body is being tested for rabies
The
38-year-old was showing the visitors around the safari park in South
Africa on Thursday when the terrifying incident happened.
He remains in hospital in a stable condition.
The
mauling, which occurred just after 1pm on Thursday, was caught on
camera by tourist Grant Ford and his 13-year-old son, who watched the
horrifying incident unfold before their eyes.
According
to Mr Ford's eyewitness account, Mr Plumb stopped his vehicle full of
tourists to watch the big cat after they spotted it in the bush.
It was then that the predator suddenly attacked.
Mr Ford said: 'The ranger peered over the side of the vehicle to see where the animal was. It was alongside him.
'Without
warning or provocation it launched itself into the safari truck and
grabbed the ranger's arm. Fortunately he had a bush jacket on.
'What followed was insane. The occupants of the safari truck were screaming.
'Some of the people seated behind the ranger tried to help by beating the animal with their cameras.'
The leopard firstly provided a great photograph for the tourists, that changed to a terrifying incident
A bag was launched at the leopard by a
tourist in the truck as it sank it's teeth into Mr Plumb, and the door
of the vehicle on the left was used to hit the animal
Witnesses
say the occupants of a Hyundai minivan travelling ahead then rammed the
leopard with their car door. But the animal still refused to relinquish
its grip on the guide.
Mr
Plumb was able to reverse the vehicle and free himself from the
leopard's grip - but the animal did not give up on the attack.
Mr Ford said: 'The leopard charged after the vehicle and hunted it down.
'It
leaped onto the bonnet of the vehicle in an apparent attempt to get to
the occupants. The ranger then braked and the animal fell to the ground.
'Again
it launched itself at the vehicle. The ranger was left with no
alternative than to take it out. He drove over the animal's hind legs.
It got up clearly injured.
'The minivan then also went at it and drove over the leopard.'
The leopard stalked the tourist vehicle, and was said to have surprised the tour guide
Shocking pictures show the leopard leaping up to the truck filled with tourists at Kruger National Park
Park
officials said in a statement that the animal 'cunningly disappeared'
from view and then sprang a surprise attack, pouncing on the guide's
arm.
Gerty Greyling, a paramedic of Lifemed, told Lowvelder: 'The leopard jumped inside the vehicle and Plumb apparently started hitting the animal with his other fist.
'The predator got hold of his other arm and another occupant inside Plumb's vehicle threw a bag at the leopard.'
Mr
Mario Paul, also a safari guide, added: 'I drove past the leopard too.
It appeared very thin and ill and showed a lot of interest in the
vehicles.'
Arno
Pietersen, who witnessed the action unfolding from further away, said:
'The driver of the safari truck looked like he was pointing out of his
vehicle at a woman behind, telling her to stop leaning out.
'His arm outside the window must have triggered the leopard into action, I was surprised at what happened next.'
William
Mambasa, general manager of Kruger National Park said: 'We would like
to thank the tourist from another vehicle for his quick and decisive
action as he saved the guide and tourists' lives.
'It
is suspected that the leopard was fighting with another one as its hind
was badly injured - the other leopard was spotted in the area watching
from a distance.'
The leopard is pictured 30 minutes before it attacked a field guide, at Kruger National Park
After being hit, the leopard sneaks back off to the bush, limping from the collision
This photo shows the leopard, which had rabies, grounding after launching its attack on a safari park guide
The
leopard suffered further injuries when the guide accidentally reversed
onto it as he sped away after being released from its grip, Mabasa said.
The animal was later put down.
The Nhongo Safaris website lists Mr Plumb as being from the UK, deciding to work in South Africa due to his 'love of the bush and nature.'
'He
has been guiding in the Kruger National Park since 2011 and is still
enjoying the bush as much as when he just started,' the profile reads.
Terrified tourists stack up behind the truck as the leopard began its assault on driver Curtis Plumb
Grant Ford (left) pictured with his family including his 13-year-old son Mikey (second right) captured the footage
On
the attack, a spokesman for SANParks told MailOnline Travel: This is a
very rare occurrence. The animal was captured and was found to be in a
very poor state.
'It
is estimated to be 16 to 17 years old, its fangs were worn out which
means it might not have had a meal in a long time. It had TB and was
very emaciated.
'The attack on the OSV truck was perhaps a desperate attempt at getting a meal unfortunately a guide became a victim.
'He is being treated in hospital and SANParks is grateful to the other tourists who assisted him.'
Last
month, a 22-year-old American tourist died after she was mauled by a
lion which leapt through an open car window in a park outside
Johannesburg.
The leopard was taken to the veterinary hospital where it was treated on for its injuries, but was later put down
Written by Unknown
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You can clearly see the jeeps could have got away from the leopard without running over him twice. What they did is brutal and not needed. The guide knows the rules and should not have been sat with his arm out of the window. Please sign my petition to try and get these men sacked from their jobs. They did not respect the rules and did not respect the animal. Not content with running over it once it was ran over twice by another car that wasn't even
ReplyDeleteinvolved....justice for the Leopard!
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/159/936/289/justice-for-the-leopard-brutally-killed-by-tour-guides-on-a-south-african-safari/