By Omar Bah
A tragic incident occurred in Zambia on Wednesday, June 26, when an elephant attacked and killed 64-year-old Juliana Gle Tourneau, a tourist from New Mexico, during a safari drive. The incident occurred near the Maramba Cultural Bridge in Livingstone, where Ms. Tourneau’s group had stopped due to traffic caused by an elephant herd. According to officials, an elephant pulled her out of the vehicle and trampled her.
Unfortunately, this is the second fatal elephant attack on a US tourist in Zambia this year. In a separate incident in Kafue National Park, 79-year-old Gail Mattson from Minnesota lost her life after an elephant charged the vehicle she was in, flipping it over and causing fatal injuries. Ms. Mattson’s daughter, Rona Wells, described the incident as a “tragic accident while on her dream adventure.”
The authorities in Zambia have urged tourists to be extremely cautious when observing wildlife in the country. Similar concerns have been raised by neighboring countries, Zimbabwe and Botswana, due to increasing elephant populations and a recent rise in deadly elephant attacks.
