In South Africa, Gary Freeman, a co-owner of the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, was killed by a charging elephant while leading a group of tourists on a guided hike. According to multiple reports, Freeman brandished his revolver to try to scare the elephant off but did not fire. His group of four tourists helped get him onto a vehicle and rushed him for medical attention, but nothing could be done.
Freeman died on April 9, though the circumstances of his death have just emerged. Police in Limpopo Province have opened an inquest into his death. No action has been taken against the elephant, but experts have been called in to study its behavior and assess its threat to others.
The plan was a guided walk on foot to the Luangwa River where they would cross by canoe and continue on an onward flight to a Bush camp.
Freeman had expressed a deep respect for elephants, with a friend noting he said he would rather be killed by an elephant than shoot one. In Zambia, Janet Taylor Easton, a British tourist, was fatally trampled by an elephant at South Luangwa National Park on July 3, alongside her cousin Alison Taylor, 67, from New Zealand. Easton and her cousin were on a walking safari holiday organized by travel company Expert Africa.
On the day of her death, Easton was on a guided walk and had left camp early to attend a safety briefing. The group was accompanied by a guide, or scout, and followed by a tracker. The guide spotted a female elephant with a younger, sub-adult elephant in the distance that appeared peaceful, and adjusted the walk so the group was downwind and remained undetected.
The guide adjusted the walk so they were down wind and remained undetected. What happened next is described as happening in a matter of seconds. The tracker saw the elephant charging from behind and shouted towards the scout who fired a warning shot. The elephant did not stop. The elephant reached the group very quickly and Janice fell.
The tracker saw the elephant charging from behind and shouted towards the scout, who fired a warning shot, but the elephant did not stop. The elephant reached the group very quickly, and Easton fell. The cause of Easton's death was traumatic thoracic injuries and elephant attack.
Easton's death has been recorded as misadventure following an inquest at Bradford Coroner's Court, presided over by assistant coroner Caroline Chandler. A report from the Zambian Ministry of Tourism was received for the inquest but did not add much information. The specific behavior or circumstances that triggered the elephant to charge in each incident remain unclear, and it is unknown why the warning shot failed to deter the elephant in Easton's case.
Janice was on a walking safari and went out with all intent and purposes on what she intended to be a lovely excursion that day. She certainly didn't anticipate that it would end in the way that it very sadly did.
Safety protocol failures or lapses in either safari operation have not been confirmed.
You still have a lot of unanswered questions and I hope you get to the bottom of those so you and the rest of the family can have some closure.