A U.S. tourist was tragically killed by an elephant in the Zambian city of Livingstone on Wednesday — marking the second such attack in the country this year, according to local officials.
Officials reported on Friday that 64-year-old Juliana Gle Tourneau lost her life when an elephant from a herd they were observing attacked their vehicle, throwing Tourneau out and trampling her.
The incident occurred near the Maramba Cultural Bridge, where the group had stopped due to traffic caused by the elephant herd, they added.
“Juliana Gle Tourneau, 64, from New Mexico, United States of America, passed away on Wednesday around 17.50 after being knocked from a parked vehicle which had stopped due to traffic caused by elephants around the Maramba Cultural Bridge,” Southern Province Police Commissioner Auxensio Daka told the Zambian national broadcaster, ZNBC.
This marks the second such attack this year, following the death of another American tourist, an 80-year-old woman, in March during a game drive in a Zambian national park where an elephant charged a truck, causing fatalities and injuries.
Zambian authorities are urging tourists to exercise extreme caution when observing wildlife in the country.
Although wildlife parks in southern Africa are known to house dangerous animals like elephants and lions, incidents like these are rare but can have fatal consequences due to the unpredictable nature of wild animals.
