An elephant on the side of the road at Kruger National Park. Picture: Unsplash
An elephant died after it was hit by two vehicles travelling on the R 71 in Limpopo on Wednesday night.
According to ER 24, five people were also injured in the incident about 4km outside Gravelotte.
Gravelotte, also known as The Valley of the Olifants (Elephants), is a little town in the Bushveld region of the Limpopo.
The town lies about half way between Tzaneen and Phalaborwa, west of the Kruger National Park and about five hours’ drive from Joburg.
ER24 released a statement on its website detailing the incident and it revealed that that it arrived on scene with other emergency services at 7.46pm, to find an elephant lying in the road.
It also said that two bakkies were found a short distance away, about 50m apart.
“On closer assessments, medics found that four men and a woman had sustained minor to moderate injuries. The patients were treated and later transported to nearby hospitals, including Mediclinic Tzaneen, for further care. Unfortunately, the elephant succumbed to its injuries,” ER24 said.
The emergency service also said that local authorities were on the scene for further investigations.
This is the second incident to happen this month in Limpopo whereby wildlife and vehicles have clashed.
On the March 9, Truck and Freight reported that a truck crashed into a hippopotamus on the R33 between Vaalwater and Modimolle.
“It happened at about 5km from Vaalwater at Wolvenfontein Spruit. The truck driver sustained serious injuries and was stuck in the overturned truck for hours,” said Truck and Freight.
The hippo also died. Following the incident, Arrive Alive posted a video on Twitter, educating drivers on how to prevent crashes into animals and wildlife on the road.
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