Camper seriously injured in sudden attack by 2 wild hyenas: 'It all happened so fast'

A South African man is recovering from a brutal hyena attack, according to Daily Maverick.

What's happening?

Nicolas Hohls, 27, was camping in Cape Vidal along the eastern coast with his father, Colin. Colin described the scene in his son's tent after he rushed there in response to Nicolas yelling.

"The first hyena grabbed his leg and tried to pull him out the tent. Then the second hyena came in and went for his face and head," Colin said, per Daily Maverick. "Now there were two attacking him, so he shoved his hand down one of their throats as far as he could. He also tried to gouge out one of their eyes."

"When I heard him screaming, I ran across with a torch. It all happened so fast, but I think they were driven off by the combination of Nic fighting back and also being disturbed by the light from my torch."

Nicolas managed to get taken to the hospital for surgery, where he successfully recuperated from the attack. Unfortunately, this attack comes on the heels of another just three weeks prior. 

Why are animal encounters important?

As food supplies diminish in natural environments due to droughts and other destructive weather patterns, wild animals look further afield for sources.

As seen here, degraded habitat can push humans into closer contact with those animals, including strong hunters like hyenas. This leads to routine exposure to humans, which can make animals more comfortable around people, the food they have, and their potential as prey.

This trend is equally visible with bears, coyotes, and dingoes. 

What's being done about animal encounters?

The government body managing the Cape Vidal campsite, Ezemvelo, spoke to the incident and the plans in its wake.

"We are appealing to all campers at its facilities to refrain from feeding animals and to ensure that their tents are securely closed before going to sleep," said officials, per Daily Maverick. 

"This follows an incident over the weekend at Cape Vidal, where campers who had left their tent open after a party were attacked by hyenas. Ezemvelo has since taken steps to capture the hyenas roaming around the campsite, after which appropriate decisions regarding their management will be made."

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