8-Year-Old Boy Survives Five Days in Wildlife Reserve Full of Lions and Elephants

harare - An eight-year-old boy from northern Zimbabwe recently went missing and ended up in a wildlife reserve teeming with lions and elephants. The boy managed to survive five days in the wilderness before being rescued.

An 8-year-old boy named Tinotenda Pudu recently disappeared from his home in rural Kariba. The boy is believed to have gotten lost and wandered around, eventually making a 23-kilometer journey to Matusadona Park, a large wildlife reserve spanning approximately 1470 square kilometers. The park is home to zebras, elephants, hippos, antelopes, and around forty lions.

Mutsa Murombedzi, a local member of parliament, shared the boy's story on X. She described how he survived for five days in the park, sleeping "on rocky outcrops amid roaring lions and passing elephants."

Murombedzi mentioned that the boy utilized his knowledge of the wilderness and survival skills to stay alive. He survived by eating wild fruits and digging small pits with a stick in dry riverbeds to access drinking water - a skill he acquired in the drought-affected area.

Members of the local Nyaminyami community launched a search for the boy, beating drums every day to guide him back home. However, it was the park rangers who eventually located him.

On his fifth day in the wilderness, Tinotenda heard a ranger's vehicle and ran towards it. He narrowly missed the vehicle, according to the parliament member. Fortunately, the rangers returned, spotting "fresh, small human footprints." They combed the area until they found the young boy. "This was likely his last chance to be rescued after five days in the wild," the parliament member stated.

Local media reported that the boy was severely weakened and had to be taken to the hospital for care.