'Life was really, really good — until one day I had a really bad day at the office.'
He was 28 and conducting tours in his native Zimbabwe, with a focus on photographic safaris.
A good day for a river trek People are also reading… March 9, 1996. A Saturday. Templer learned a good friend who was to lead a canoe safari down the Zambezi River had malaria. He agreed to take his pal's place."I loved that stretch of the river. It was an area I know like the back of my hand." Templer's canoe led the way, with the other two canoes and kayak to follow. He pulled into a little channel waiting on the others. But the third canoe had fallen back from the group and was off the planned course. Templer's not sure how that happened.
"But I also knew that if I slapped the blade of my paddle on water ... that's really loud. And the percussion underwater seems to turn the animals away," he said."So I slapped the water, and as it was supposed to do, the torpedo wave stops.""I'm leaning over — it's kind of a made-for-Hollywood movie — Evans is reaching up. ... Our fingers almost touched. And then the water between us just erupted. Happened so fast I didn't see a thing.
Hippos and humansThey also kill people. That we know for sure. Many internet sources say around 500 a year, but an exact figure is still uncertain because some attacks and deaths come in very remote regions and don't get reported. While more stats need to be collected, one study found that the probability of being killed by a hippopotamus attack is in the range of 29% to 87% — higher than that of a grizzly bear attack at 4.8%, shark attack at 22.7% and crocodile attack at 25%."I'm guessing I was wedged so far down its throat it must have been uncomfortable because he spat me out. So I burst to the surface, sucked a lungful of fresh air and I came face to face with Evans, the guide who I was trying to rescue.
"I'm making pretty good progress and I'm swimming along there and I come up for the stroke and swimming freestyle and I look under my arm — and until my dying day I'll remember this — there's this hippo charging in towards me with his mouth wide open bearing in before he scores a direct hit." Templer said one of the clients watching the horror later described it like a"vicious dog trying to rip apart a rag doll."Meanwhile, apprentice guide Mack in the safety kayak —"showing incredible bravery, risking his life to save mine — pulls his boat in inches from my face." Templer managed to grab a handle on the kayak, and"Mack dragged me to the relative safety of this rock.
"Hippos are important ecosystem engineers of the ecology of freshwater areas they inhabit. This is through nutrient recycling from dung ," Muruthi said. He assessed the situation: One man missing. The first aid kit, radio and gun all gone. Six scared clients, two canoes and one paddle left. And his own body was shattered.
"I chose to stick around, and as soon as I made that choice, it was more pain than I could ever imagine I could endure. It was so intense I thought I was going to die, and when I didn't, I kind of wished I would." He realized that in the ICU when he woke up and was feeling for his left hand. It was gone."I just remember feeling devastated. I spent my whole life being active and it was almost more than I could bare."
"Hippos have no interest in dealing with people. Stay away from them, and they will leave you alone. They are not hunting humans," Lewison said. "Follow the rules. If you are a tourist, and it says 'Stay in your vehicle,' then stay in your vehicle. And even when you're in your vehicle, don't drive it right to the animal."
Muruthi, Lewison and Templer all said never stay between a hippo and the water. If it's charging you, run parallel to the water source. As with so many other protective female animals, never get between a mama hippo and her young, Templer said."Typically, if a hippo is going to be attacking, you'll see it coming way before. There will be that bow wave. ... If you slap the water, the percussion 99.9 times out of 100 will turn the hippo," Templer said.
"Hippos typically hole punch you, so there isn't much you can do if they get hold of you," Lewison said.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
'A real-life hero:' Honoring and celebrating the life of Chicago Firefighter Jermaine PeltEveryone described Pelt as generous, hardworking - and a pillar in every community he was a part of.
Read more »
Twinkling Stars Supply the Dust That Leads to LifeA team of Japanese astronomers has found a connection between the dustiness of Red Giant stars and changes in their brightness, which could provide clues about the origins of life.
Read more »
Tim Scott says he would sign ‘the most conservative pro-life legislation’ Congress can passSouth Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott signaled Friday that he would sign a six-week federal ban on abortion if passed by Congress while he was president, staking a more extreme position than he had previously taken.
Read more »
Son gets life in drive-thru hit that killed mob-linked dadA New York man has been ordered to spend the rest of his life in prison for hiring a hitman to kill his father, a reputed Mafia associated gunned down at a McDonald's drive-thru in what prosecutors called a scheme to control a family real estate empire
Read more »
|i|Waco: The Aftermath|/i| Cast vs. Real Life People The Series is Based OnWaco: The Aftermath Cast vs. Real Life People The Series is Based On
Read more »
How Old Is Too Old to Start Strength Training?Lifting weights may be the best way to improve quality of life for older adults, even if they've never held a dumbbell in their life.
Read more »