Binty/iStock(NEW YORK) — A South African safari turned into a terrifying high speed chase through the brush with one of the area’s largest animals.
Rian Boshoff, who was with his tour group to photograph leopards last month, told ABC News they first spotted the white rhino in the road and slowly tried to pass it when the animal charged.
“At first, I just thought it’s going to be like a short charge and then it would stop,” Boshoff said. “The road had a lot of turns in it which made it difficult for us to get away.”
But even the driver’s maneuvers weren’t enough to shake the animal off their tail.
“The driver took a 90-degree turn into the bush to try and deter the rhino because they have bad eyesight,” Boshoff explained. “But he was determined to get to us he just kept on coming.”
Cellphone video captured a portion of the nearly two-minute chase by the three-ton animal, which can reach speeds up to 30 mph.
Looking back on the closer-than expected-encounter, Boshoff said, “I thought it [was] going to eat us.”
The safari driver reportedly told the group that same rhino had charged other vehicles in the past.
“The driver really did a good job to keep us safe,” Boshoff explained. “He just asked us to sit still and he got us out of the situation.”
There were no injuries reported from the incident.
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