An elephant did this to a tour vehicle in the Kruger National Park in South Africa recently.
The statement from South Park Kruger read:
Today, 22 May 2026, we experienced an elephant incident while out on safari.
An elephant bull was walking calmly down the road, and our guide read the situation carefully, giving the bull plenty of space to continue past the vehicle, as this is their home and their road.
The bull walked past the vehicle calmly, but as he reached the front of the car, he suddenly lost his temper and bumped the vehicle, with one tusk going into the engine area. Our guide remained calm throughout the incident and handled the situation as professionally as possible with the guests.
Thankfully, not even a scratch on anyone and no injuries at all.
This is a reminder that every wildlife encounter is different, and situations can change very quickly. We have had elephants and entire herds walk past our vehicles hundreds of times without any interaction, and today was simply one of those unpredictable moments that can happen in nature.
Wildlife will always be wild, and while we take every precaution to respect the animals and keep our guests safe, nature remains unpredictable. We can use this as a learning lesson and a reminder to always respect these incredible animals and never underestimate nature.
The most important thing is that everyone came out of the situation safely.”
I watched the video and the elephant did not even bump the vehicle that hard. That’s why I am always angry and terrified when I see people stepping out of their vehicle to photograph them. There are signs everywhere telling people to stay in their cars but every time I have been to a national park, there is someone acting like an idiot. Addo Elephant park has a ‘wall of shame’ where they post photos of people doing silly things in the park.
Here is a video from Instagram where you can see that he didn’t stamp or bash at the vehicle, but his incredible power pushed it right off the road.
