American woman, 22, dragged to her death by a lion and 'local tour guide' seriously hurt after leaving their car window open during South African safari

SOUTH AFRICA -- A 22-year-old American woman has been mauled to death and another person seriously injured after being pulled through their car window by a lion in a safari park in South Africa.

The tourist and her companion, thought to be a South African tour guide, were taking a 'routine' drive through the 20-acre compound containing about a dozen big cats near Johannesburg.

Gauteng Lion Park employee Scott Simpson, 28, told Daily Mail Online: 'The lion approached from the left of the vehicle, the passenger side and walked quite close to the car.

A police van arrives at the Lion Park where an American tourist was
killed by a lioness on June 1 near Johannesburg, South Africa

'The witnesses said they saw the guests taking pictures of the lion from a meter away, then the lion lunged at the car and bit the lady through the window.' 

Mr Simpson said park staff rushed to pull the lioness off the young woman and carried out CPR.  Paramedics were called but could do nothing to save her.

'When the paramedics were treating the lady she unfortunately passed away,' he said.

He has been working for less than a year at the Park, which is an hour from Johannesburg.


A 22-year-old American woman died after being dragged out of her
SUV (pictured) while on safari on Monday in Gauteng Lion
 Park near Johannesburg, South Africa

It's the third big cat attack at the park in just four months. 

Police confirmed that the tourist was 22 years old and an American citizen. The U.S. Embassy confirmed the incident has been reported to them, reported CBS News.

The lioness responsible for the attack has been identified and is being kept alone in a separate enclosure. There were no plans to destroy the animal.

In March, an Australian tourist was injured by a lioness after going on safari with his car windows open.

Brendan Smith, from Perth, was left with deep flesh wounds after the big cat pounced through the window and bit his leg.

 

Smith posted pictures of his injuries on Facebook which happened after he'd only been in South Africa for 36 hours.

Two days later, a 13-year-old from a nearby slum was attacked by a cheetah while riding a bicycle through the grounds.

In December 2013, a former South African franchise rugby player Brett Tucker and his family were attacked by a lion at the same park. Tucker's father reportedly suffered minor injuries.

The park has more than 85 lions, including rare white lions, and a variety of other animals, including giraffes and ostriches.

According to its website, Lion Park guarantees 'super close-up animal views' but it does order visitors to keep their car windows shut.

The park has previously come under fire for allowing visitors to pet lion cubs. It was also accused of breeding lions for 'canned hunting', a charge that the park has refuted.

The park offers tented accommodation and also hosts children's birthday parties.

A visitor to the Lion Park last year uploaded a video to YouTube of a lion opening a car door.

Employee Mr Simpson said visitors to the park were warned not to leave their windows open to avoid attacks.

He told ENCA: 'We make it so clear. We put signage up everywhere that people must keep their windows closed.  We hand them a slip of paper when they enter the park, I really don't understand why people think its okay to leave windows open.

He added that the park takes safety seriously.

Brendan Smith, from Perth in Australia (pictured with
 an unidentified friend) had only been in South Africa for
36 hours when he was bitten by a lioness after
leaving his window open on a safari

 

 

'We have signage up everywhere informing people to keep their windows closed. We hand out flyers as they are driving in reminding them to keep their windows closed. We really do everything we can to make sure that people know that,' he added.

The park boasts 'guaranteed super-close up views' of the animals on its website.

It's been visited by celebrities including R'n'B singer John Legend and pop star Shakira in the past.
Lion attacks have been known to happen in the past. 

In 2011, Ranesh Rajkaran, 28, blocked a lioness from getting into his car with his arm and was bitten but fortunately he only suffered scratches.

He and his wife, Somashnie, who was pregnant, had been celebrating their second wedding anniversary at the park and had food inside the car.

Rajkaran said he opened the windows a little due to the sweltering heat but didn't expect a lioness to shove her paw through the gap.

'I think she must have smelled the food in the car or maybe she just wanted to play,' he said.
In December 2013, former league rugby player Brett Tucker and his family were attacked by a lion at Gauteng Lion Park.

Tucker had his daughter on his lap at the time when a lion put its paw through the window but her grandfather acted quickly and threw her in the backseat.

Tucker's father suffered minor injuries to the shoulder after he tried to roll his window up, but accidentally rolled it further down.

(Daily Mail - June 1, 2015)