Four rogue lions back home

Four of the five lions believed to have escaped from the Kruger National Park were successfully darted and returned to the park by last night. One remained at large. A resident reported a sighting of the animals at the N4/Mananga crossing outside Komatipoort yesterday.

South African National Parks (SANParks) CEO Fundisile Mketeni has expressed his gratitude to the SANParks team, members of the SA Police Service and the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) for the successful darting and capture of the four lions.

“We acknowledge that the area presented challenges for the search teams but their persistence and dedication under those difficult circumstances has ensured the safe return of these animals with no injury or loss to human life.”

The five lions are believed to have escaped from the Kruger National Park on Monday and were yesterday tracked down 60km from the Mananga border with Swaziland by a SANParks chopper pilot.

“Our team of rangers were relentless in ensuring the safety of the communities and the lions in their search,” said SANParks’ Ike Phaahla.

“The team of the MTPA was leading the operation and we had the help of the traffic department of Mpumalanga, as well as the Saps.”

According to SANParks, investigations were underway to determine how the lions managed to leave the park. It is believed the five young male lions were chased out by a dominant pride. – Citizen reporter and CNS