Taxi hits and kills giraffe, which then falls onto another tourist vehicle
A minibus taxi hit a giraffe in the Kruger National Park (KNP) today.
PHALABORWA – The animal then fell onto a rental vehicle, injuring two foreign tourists.
According to Ike Phaahla, the spokesman for the KNP, the incident occurred before midday between Mopani and Shingwedzi rest camps.
The taxi driver could not avoid the giraffe which was crossing the road and struck the animal, killing it on impact.
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There were 13 passengers in the taxi.
The animal fell onto the rented bakkie, crushing the roof of the vehicle and critically injuring the elderly Swedish driver.
Both the Swedish nationals were flown by helicopter to Mediclinic Nelspruit.
“The driver’s wife sustained minor injuries and is currently in hospital for observation,” Phaahla said.
The driver and two passengers in the minibus taxi sustained minor injuries.
The front of the taxi bore the brunt of the collision, with heavy damage shown on the photos found on the SANParks Twitter page.
Phaahla stated that the matter will be investigated by the South African Police Services in order to determine if negligence on the part of either of the drivers contributed to the accident.
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