He couldn’t understand why his son wasn’t answering his phone. They’d scheduled a 9.30am video call so it was strange that he wasn’t responding.
Maybe something had come up at the private lodge in Limpopo where Sheldon Hooper worked as a field guide, his dad, Gordon, decided.
Still, he had an uneasy feeling and so he dialed his son’s number again.
What he didn’t realise was that hundreds of kilometres away, his son’s phone was lying on the ground, ringing, while Sheldon was hanging on to life by a thread.
Moments later Gordon’s whole world imploded as his wife, Cindy (47), burst into his home office.
“Sheldon’s been attacked by an elephant,” she told him.
Someone from the Thornybush River Lodge, the luxury reserve where he worked, had phoned but the details were vague.
Gordon (63) phoned the lodge and the news was devastating. By that point paramedics were on scene, he was told.
Sheldon (27) was lying in the arms of his 22-year-old girlfriend, Rebecca Rowles, who also worked at the lodge. CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) was being administered.
“At that point I knew he was going to die,” Gordon, who’s experienced in first aid, tells us. “I know that when you get to CPR, the heart has stopped.”
About 20 minutes after the attack, Sheldon was dead.
The resort is about seven hours away from his home near Hartbeespoort in the North West, but Gordon tried to get there as soon as he could. When he and Cindy arrived, the lodge’s management and volunteer trauma counsellors were waiting to comfort them.
この記事は YOU South Africa の 17 September 2020 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は YOU South Africa の 17 September 2020 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、8,500 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
OUR BRAVE LITTLE FIGHTER
Like her late sister, little Elana was born with a rare lung condition and can't breathe without a ventilator, but her parents are walking this familiar path with courage and hope
DOUBLE JEOPARDY
With his new film, The Fall Guy, Ryan Gosling put stunt doubles centre stage but how hard is it for a complete amateur to master the trade? Journalist Simon Usborne decided to find out
INSPIRATION EVERYWHERE
Irish writer Cecelia Ahern chats to YOU about writing her novels in longhand, her love of Lego and looking forward to her first wine-tasting in South Africa
THE KIDS ARE NOT OKAY
Something happened around 2010 that's had a huge impact on Gen Z, says a new book. It was the start of the phone-based childhood, and it's resulted in a rewiring of kids' brains - and a surge in depression and anxiety
HE'S ON THE BALL
Despite having no lower legs, -Grayton's prowess on the rugby field has made him a social media star
THIS ISN'T JUSTICE
A woman was shot dead by her fiancé, who said he thought she was an intruder. Now her family believe he got off lightly
THE BOSS IN CHARGE OF YOUR CROSS
As chief electoral officer of the IEC, Sy Mamabolo has his hands full these days!
HEARTBREAK AND HOPE
Relatives and loved ones share their stories as rescue efforts continue for the people still trapped under the rubble of a collapsed building in George
BLOOMING!
Shes adored by fans and loathed by haters, but like the character she plays in her new movie, Anne Hathaway says shes putting her own Joy first
SUSSEXES' AFRICAN ADVENTURE
Meghan and Harry took Nigeria by storm – but relations with the royal family remain icy