Lion on the loose? Lion seen on a KZN roadside [WATCH]

WILD: A lion was spotted on a roadside near Ulundi in KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday. Check out the incredible footage here…

Yes, it happened! A motorist was driving along the P700 road near Ulundi, northern KZN, on Wednesday when he spotted a LION.

WATCH AS THE LION CASUALLY WALK NEXT TO THE ROAD

The lion is believed to be part of a pride that escaped from Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park.

According to reports, communities in the area live in fear, as this is not the first time lions have escaped.

Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife officials confirmed on Thursday that they are still searching for lions believed to have escaped from the Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park.

Spokesperson Musa Mntambo said no human attacks or deaths had been reported yet. However, there are reports of cow carcasses being found.

“Residents from Ulundi are on high alert and informed Ezemvelo about their sightings of lions. The animals had not been recaptured.”

Musa Mntambo

Mntambo said it was unclear how many escaped from the park.

THE LION IS BELIEVED TO BE PART OF A PRIDE THAT ESCAPED

He furthermore said one lion had been missing for a while. On Wednesday, residents informed there about two more sightings.

“We were only aware of one. The lions likely escaped through an opening in the fence.

“There is an opening at the fence caused by illegal soil mining. We suspect that the lions managed to escape through a hole in that fence.”

Musa Mntambo

TimesLIVE accompanied wildlife authorities into the bush, where the carcasses of two calves were found. Locals said lions often pick off younger livestock.

The incident comes after the Okhukho and Nqulwane communities said on Tuesday they would take matters into their own hands and fence off parts of HiP after several dangerous encounters with escaped wildlife.

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COMMUNITIES ARE LIVING IN FEAR

The KZN Wildlife conservation board met last week to discuss the impact of animal escapes on community livestock after two rhinos escaped from the same reserve.

Meanwhile, MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environment Siboniso Duma said they were concerned about the escaped animals in the area.

It is believed he also spent Wednesday in the Hluhluwe nature reserve examining the fence surrounding the nature reserve.

“It is true that people and animals can live in peace and harmony if there is cooperation and understanding of the situation.

“We know that there are people in the community who ended up removing the fence surrounding the nature reserves because of social problems and so on, but this is unacceptable because it puts public health at risk.”

Siboniso Duma

‘COMMUNITIES REMOVE THE FENCE SURROUNDING THE RESERVES…’

He furthermore said his Department would collaborate with the Department of Agriculture to discuss how they can intervene to ensure that there are enough dams and grass so that livestock and wild animals do not compete because that ends up causing problems in the community.

The public was urged to be careful.

By: Corné van Zyl