A British man was left “badly chewed up” after a hippo attacked him on a canoeing journey in Zambia.
Roland Cherry, 63, was on a five-week safari vacation together with his spouse Shirley in June when the hippo charged at their boat and snatched him – leaving Roland wedged within the mammal’s jaw.
He suffered main accidents to his leg, shoulders and stomach.
Picture:
Ambulance employees with Roland after the assault
Whereas Shirley had managed to swim away from the hippo when it attacked, Roland suffered a dislocated shoulder when the animal hit the canoe, leaving him unable to swim to security.
“The hippo came up and grabbed me from underneath and took me down to the bottom of the river before letting me go.
“That was when it actually struck house. I assumed, nicely, maybe I will die right here tonight.”
Picture:
Roland Cherry and the workers who handled him
Roland, who’s from Warwickshire, stated it took him “a couple of moments to process what’s going on here”.
“You think, oh my goodness, what’s in the water with me? I better get away from here.”
He believes he was not conscious of what was occurring, however remembers seeing his intensive accidents on the financial institution of the river.
Roland added: “I looked down at my thigh, which was very badly chewed up, and I could see flesh sticking out from my shorts, and I could see the blood on my left side as well.
“The stomach wound… I wasn’t actually conscious of on the time as a result of it was all lined up by the life vest. So it was actually after that, I turned conscious of how badly injured I used to be.”
Roland was told by one of the surgeons who later treated him in South Africa that he had “by no means met anyone who’s survived a hippo assault earlier than”.
Hippo assaults are extra frequent than is broadly understood, Roland stated.
He added: “Hippos attack mainly locals on the rivers in that part of Africa and they are exceptionally dangerous.”
Roland is now fundraising for the Mtendere Mission Hospital in Zambia which he says “undoubtedly” saved his life.
