Baboon bite rips man’s shoulder open in Marloth Park
Max de Kock was admitted to hospital last Sunday after an encounter with a baboon outside his house in Marloth Park, Mpumalanga. He has been discharged in the meantime.
Many a Lowvelder or even just a visitor to the Lowveld has had a run-in with either monkeys or baboons, but how many of them have a scar to prove it?
Last Sunday afternoon in Marloth Park, this is exactly what happened to Mbombela local Max de Kock.
De Kock said he was busy in the bedroom of their Soetdoring Street home when he heard a commotion in the kitchen.
“I went to check what it was and saw a male baboon.
“The front door was open and when he saw me he moved towards it, slapped me on my leg and ran out.”
De Kock proceeded to pick up the fruit strewn about by the baboon whereafter he went outside to check if the animal was still there.
“The baboon saw me, jumped on me and bit me on the back of my left shoulder.
“My first reaction was to get away from the thing, but it happened so fast, I barely had a chance to turn around.
“It was only afterwards that I realised how much worse it could have been; he could have bitten me in my neck or just continued to attack me after the first bite. I can only describe it as a hair-raising experience.”
De Kock was at the house alone as his wife was at their Mbombela home at the time. He got a wet cloth to try and stop the bleeding and then went to the nearby clinic. The facility was closed, however, and he could not reach any of the personnel.
Between one of his friends and security services on duty they managed to get an ambulance from Komatipoort which then transported him to Mediclinic Nelspruit.
Here, his wound was cleaned, sewn up and he was given the necessary injections. He was discharged on Wednesday and will be able to return to work within a week.
Cyril Ripinga, head of communications for the Nkomazi Local Municipality, said their rangers were still searching for the baboon, but that it was a difficult task locating one animal among the many present in Marloth Park.
According to him, they would only be able to determine what is to be done with the animal after an assessment.
This article has been translated from Afrikaans.
Read original story on lowvelder.co.za
