Elephant Tramples Man at Kruger National Park in Tragic Accident

By Bethanie H

Published

01/28/2025

A 59-year-old man lost his life over the weekend in South Africa’s Kruger National Park. The man, Shaik Adam Shabir Ammed from a town called eMkhondo in South Africa, was trying to protect two children who had rushed toward an elephant, and the elephant began to charge at them. The elephant trampled the man, ultimately killing him, but the children escaped with non-life-threatening injuries.

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“Today a tragic accident occurred when a tourist was charged and trampled by an elephant near Crocodile River at Malelane Gate,” wrote South African National Parks (SANParks) in a press release. “This, regrettably, resulted in loss of life.”

In an update posted two days after the incident, SANParks identified the victim as Ammed. Other outlets have reported that the two children were Ammed’s grandchildren, ages five and 11.

“Initial eyewitness accounts indicate that the family parked close to the Malelane reception area and the children ran past the bridge into the bush whereupon an individual elephant from a nearby herd charged them,” SANParks says in its updated press release. “The deceased rushed to assist the children and that is when he was chased and trampled by one of the animals. He succumbed to his injuries on the scene.”