logo
'I saw a lioness trying to EAT my husband, with his head in its jaws': Heroic wife relives moment she HIT lion in the face in doomed bid to save partner - and says she does not want the animal killed, despite his death

'I saw a lioness trying to EAT my husband, with his head in its jaws': Heroic wife relives moment she HIT lion in the face in doomed bid to save partner - and says she does not want the animal killed, despite his death

Daily Mail​a day ago

A 'heroic' wife who tried to save her husband after he was attacked and dragged off by a lion has spoken out about the terrifying ordeal for the first time.
Conny Kebbel, 57, was on a wildlife expedition camp in northern Namibia with her businessman husband Bernd, 59, last month when a starved lion pounced on him and killed him.
The father-of-two, who had climbed down a ladder from his rooftop tent mounted on the top of a 4 x 4 to use the bathroom in the early hours of the morning, was suddenly grabbed by the predator - a lioness called Charlie.
The ferocious roar of the animal and the cries of her desperate husband as the lioness grabbed him by the neck and dragged him into the bushes alerted Mrs Kebbel, who was still sleeping in the rooftop tent.
Speaking about her husband's tragic death, Mrs Kebbel described how he had left his tent at around 1.30 am, when she suddenly heard a sound.
'It was as if he was surprised and then a lion [began] growling.
'I looked out of the tent and saw a lioness had grabbed Bernd by his head,' she said as she relived the horror of the attack.
Mrs Kebbel bravely rushed out of the tent and began hitting the lioness in the face with a satellite pole she had ripped off from a vehicle in an attempt to get the wild cat away from her husband.
The 12-year-old lioness is said to have been on her last legs, skeletal and starving
A man who was on the expedition with the couple also rushed to Mr Kebbel's rescue and managed to hit the predator in the head with a small torch, scaring the animal away before it could devour her victim.
But nothing could be done to save the keen outdoorsman who was killed almost instantly in the savage attack.
Charlie disappeared behind the bushes, but she then returned and 'continued to mock charge the group coming in from different directions'.
'Everybody fled into the cars because Charlie was posing a threat to us all', Mrs Kebbel continued.
The tragedy happened during a desert trip in the Kunene Region where a group of six adults and six children travelling in three 4 x 4's had stopped to make camp.
The night after Mr Kebbel's violent death, Charlie attacked another group nearby.
A video was posted on social media of the damage she had caused to their tents as she tried to slash and bite its way inside.
Following the horrific ordeal, officials of the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism shot Charlie dead as she took a break under a bush.
A spokesman said: 'The animal had become habituated and used to humans and was posing an ongoing threat to community members and tourists so a difficult decision was made'.
Conny Kebbel, who shares two children with her late husband, said: 'We are not angry. We have found peace. We did not want Charlie to die. It happened at a place we and Bernd loved.'
A lion expert who has known Bernd and Conny Kebbel for over 10 years hailed her amazing bravery in taking on a lion killing her husband alone and unarmed.
The tour guide who leads expeditions in the NW Namibiian deserts said: 'Conny has become part of folklore as who in their right takes on a lioness and lives.
'It is all anyone is talking about around the bush fires at night.
'She was said to have been screaming at it like a dervish and grabbed its leather collar and was physically hauling this thing more than twice her weight off Bernd.
'Her screams carried to the two other tents and another man bravely joined her in taking on the lioness armed only with a torch and battered it over the head.
'The lioness was shocked at being attacked and retreated but not far and tried to get back to her 'kill' a number of times but was driven back each time it came.
'The only thing they could do was get Bernd aboard a vehicle and away from there.'
The lion expert added that the 'bravery of Conny is all that anyone is talking about right now'.
The 12-year-old lioness is said to have been on her last legs, skeletal and starving.
Photos of the animal taken just weeks before showed her bony body, suggesting she had not killed to feed for a long time.
It is believed that her natural fear of human beings was overcome by hunger and she crept into the camp in which Mr Kebbel and his wife and their friends were camping out in.
Mr Kebbel, who was originally from Germany, was a wealthy philanthropist who had spent large sums of money supporting Namibian desert lions.
He also worked closely supporting the Desert Lion Project with donations and fitting out their research vehicles.
Charlie was part of the three 'famous' orphan cub sisters of the Skeleton Coast who starred in an award-winning documentary on their incredible survival broadcast worldwide.
Namibia has about 800 desert lions left with half in the National Park at Etosha and the rest scattered in the boiling heat and drought of one of the world's most inhospitable areas.
There are about 38,000 free roaming lions left in Africa mostly in conservation areas and the Namibian Ministry of the Environment & Tourist estimates they have just 800 left.
Every year in Africa lions are estimated to kill about 250 people.
Conservation groups are warning tourists only to camp in designated sites managed by the local communities for safety but to also help protect lions like Charlie.
One conservationist said: 'The loss of a human life, an irreplaceable lioness and part of Namibia's tourism and nature legacy, is mourned and may Charlie's story serve as a lasting reminder that true admiration of nature begins with respect and distance'.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Husband wanted to 'do the right thing by terminally ill wife' before they plunged to their death with their two Dachshunds off 300ft cliff, friends claim
Husband wanted to 'do the right thing by terminally ill wife' before they plunged to their death with their two Dachshunds off 300ft cliff, friends claim

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

Husband wanted to 'do the right thing by terminally ill wife' before they plunged to their death with their two Dachshunds off 300ft cliff, friends claim

The husband who plunged to his death off a 300ft cliff alongside his terminally ill wife and two Dachshunds had likely wanted to do 'the right thing' by her, friends said today. John and Lynn King, in their 60s, died instantly alongside their two dogs when their silver Ford Mondeo drove off a cliff close to the Needles on the Isle of Wight on Friday evening. John worked as a driver for local bus company Southern Vectis, and is understood to have known the routes around the island well. Friends who knew John, 67, and his 'frail' wife Lyn, 66, said they have been left wondering whether 'what happened was him doing the right thing by his wife'. Lynn had a 'terminal diagnosis' and was rarely seen out of their home in Cowes, it was said. Emergency services were called at around 7.20pm on Friday evening to Alum Bay on the Isle of Wight after the car plummeted off the cliff. Retired bus driver Kevin Parsons, 70, said his ex-colleague and friend John moved to the Isle of Wight a couple of years ago with the intention to retire on the island when he finished his career as a bus driver. 'That was the plan', Mr Parsons said. Mr Parsons, from Eastleigh, Hampshire, said he worked with John at the Stagecoach Winchester depot 10 years ago for about three years before John started working for Southern Vectis on the island. He said John knew the private, 'very narrow', road which the car drove off the cliff from very well as it was part of a bus route he used to drive. Father of four Mr Parsons said: 'I've only met [John] a couple of times. 'I heard the other day somebody said that she had had a terminal diagnosis. 'What it was, I don't know. 'It would have to be something really bad for that to happen.' Speaking about the speculation that John might have acted intentionally, Mr Parsons said: 'I find it really hard to believe that John would do something like that. 'Having said that, I don't know why he was there. 'Public cars don't go on that road, that's for the people that work up there, the open top bus goes up there, it's a very narrow road. 'He would know that. 'What they were doing there, I don't know.' Mr Parsons said that John used to drive open top buses on the Isle of Wight, and ''he's been up there enough times on the bus''. He said: 'You have to keep your wits about it because it's a very narrow road and the last thing you want is to see cars going up there.' Mr Parsons added: 'It's not like John out of the blue went out there. 'If you're a driver at [Isle of Wight bus company] Southern Vectis, you would know that stretch of road because they train you so much to do it. 'He had the dogs in the car... we always used to joke because he was a very big, tall man, but he had the smallest dog in history. 'No matter what you were talking, if you were onto his dogs, look out - he absolutely adored the things.' Mr Parsons thinks that John could have had a 'medical incident' which caused the crash. John had a heart attack a few years ago and was off work for a year, according to his former colleague. The Kings' rented home is a three-bed terraced home on a street in Cowes, a seaside town. Two dog ornaments can be seen in the window, as well as a small sign with an illustration of a sausage dog with the word 'dachshund' above it. A neighbour of the Kings, who did not want to be named, said that when Lynn answered the door to their acquaintance, she only opened it a crack and said that she was 'in all day'. Of Lynn's appearance, the young man said it seemed as if she had a serious illness. 'Just like, if you had some sort of, feeling rough or bone issues or something I guess', he said. 'I'm only going by my mum really, because my mum used to be like that, frail, she couldn't move her head due to arthritis, that was many years ago. 'I've seen them come out with their dogs sometimes.' The young man added that the couple were 'quiet', and 'never seemed to be the type that wanted to communicate' so they didn't talk to them. He thinks he saw the Kings on Friday, before the incident took place. He said: 'I'm thinking, was that the last time I saw them alive?' One neighbour only found out that John had a wife after hearing the news about the incident. The neighbour, a middle-aged man, said: 'He said hello, he would walk along, stroke [my] dogs and occasionally his own barked as well. 'A really nice guy - it's not something any of us would have expected, but like I say they never really seemed [...] his wife, I don't think we knew he was struggling to care for her.' The man said they heard the couple's two dachshunds 'barking in the morning for their breakfast'. He thought that John was a 'private man', and said he drove a Grey Mondeo which 'always looked well cared for'. 'I think we all are assuming what happened was him doing the right thing by his wife,' he said. 'Just from, as I say, the few times I would speak to him he would stroke the dog.' Another neighbour, a young woman, said of John: 'He always wore braces with a blue shirt and grey trousers. 'I've never seen her [Mrs King], but it was really sad last night coming home and seeing an ornament in the living room window - a sausage dog, that's so sad.' She said she also saw police in the street after the incident. She wondered whether the incident was a purposeful act - they said: 'I wouldn't call people selfish for doing that [...] but why the dogs?' Someone else living on the same street, a middle-aged man, said that the couple were 'very quiet' and 'quite elderly' - Lynn was a 'small grey-haired lady'. He said: 'I only saw her recently, a couple of times a few weeks ago. 'I only ever used to see him just coming and going over to work or doing a bit of shopping, nothing really apart from that, on nodding terms I suppose.' The couple's family said in a statement released through police: 'We are all devastated and numb from the loss, and would respect some privacy at this time.' Richard Tyldsley, Southern Vectis general manager, said: 'John King was not an employee of Southern Vectis at the time of his death, having left earlier in the year. 'John had worked for the company as a network driver for two and half years prior to leaving. We are saddened to learn of this tragic event and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.' A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: 'We can confirm the death of two people, a woman and a man, aged 66 and 67 respectively, following an incident at The Needles on the Isle of Wight on Friday June 6. 'We were called at 7.21pm after a Ford Mondeo, which was being driven along Alum Bay New Road, left the road, came off the cliff top and came to rest in the water below. 'Two dogs, both dachshunds, were also in the car and died in the incident. 'Formal identification procedures are ongoing, but next of kin have been notified. A post-mortem examination will take place on Tuesday June 10. 'As part of the ongoing investigation into the incident, which has been referred to the coroner, officers have been carrying out inquiries at an address on Arctic Road, Cowes, to help them to establish what happened.'

Dad & daughter, 9, killed in horror house fire while mum ‘away on trip' are named – as sister fighting for life
Dad & daughter, 9, killed in horror house fire while mum ‘away on trip' are named – as sister fighting for life

The Sun

timean hour ago

  • The Sun

Dad & daughter, 9, killed in horror house fire while mum ‘away on trip' are named – as sister fighting for life

THE dad and daughter, 9, who were killed in a horror house fire have been named, as tributes pour in. The blaze that ripped through the house in Yorkshire killed Sohaib Ahmed, aged 38, and his daughter Manahal Ahmed, aged nine. 5 5 It also saw the little girl's 11-year-old sister rushed to hospital and she remains in critical condition. Enquiries into the fire remain ongoing by Kirklees District Police on behalf of the coroner. This comes after it emerged the mother of the family had been on a trip when the tragedy unfolded. Neighbours told The Sun that the mum-of-three was away on a religious pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, and she is returning home today. Pictures of the scene show firefighters investigating what looks like a burnt-out tumble dryer. The fire service is working with the police to establish the cause of the fire. Emergency services were called to the scene, in the market town of Heckmondwike, at 6.19am on Sunday morning. West Yorkshire Fire Service said it sent four crews and firefighters pulled a man and two young girls out of the burning building. Despite the best efforts of paramedics, the dad died at the scene. Both girls were rushed to hospital, where the youngest sadly died later that day. The father, a taxi driver, was looking after their three children - two daughters and a son - as his wife was away. Their eldest was staying with relatives on Saturday night so he was not inside the red-brick semi detached house in the quiet cul de sac when the fire took hold. Cops said they don't believe there are suspicious circumstances surrounding the tragedy. Former neighbours Andy Boys, 30, and Mehvish Iqbal, 29, came to lay floral tributes outside the fire damaged house. Mehvish said: 'My son used to play outside with her little girl, the one that has passed away. It is just awful. 'To know that the mother is away in Mecca and she is coming back to this, I don't know how she is going to deal with it mentally. 'The girls are lovely little girls, I pray that her older sister pulls through.' Andy said: 'They were lovely neighbours, we lived next door.' A number of floral tributes have been left outside the house. Another neighbour said: 'I heard sirens on Sunday morning and then looked out to see the smoke and the emergency crews doing CPR on the dad and kids. 'It seemed to go on forever, it was horrendous.' Another neighbour said: 'The Mum was away in Saudi Arabia for Hajj. I've been told she is coming back today. My heart breaks for her. 'I know their eldest son was stopping elsewhere with a relative when the fire started. 'The Dad is a taxi driver and such a nice man. It's is devastating for everybody and we just hope the other little girl survives.' Detective Inspector Paul Greatorex said: "We are continuing to work with colleagues at the fire service to investigate this dreadfully sad incident which has resulted in a father and daughter losing their lives. "Extensive enquiries have been ongoing since yesterday and we have been working to locate and support relatives of the victims both here and outside of the UK at what is clearly an awful time for the family. "While our enquiries remain ongoing we do not believe there are any suspicious circumstances regarding the cause of the fire and will be preparing a file for the coroner in due course. "Our support for the family involved clearly also still continues." 5 5 5

BREAKING NEWS Girl, nine and her father, 38, who died in house fire are named by police
BREAKING NEWS Girl, nine and her father, 38, who died in house fire are named by police

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

BREAKING NEWS Girl, nine and her father, 38, who died in house fire are named by police

Police have named a father and daughter who died in house fire as 38-year-old Sohaib Ahmed and his nine-year-old daughter Manahal. Mother Asifa was not at the family home in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire, when the blaze took hold as she was on a pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, in Saudi Arabia. The couple's 11-year-old daughter, who was seriously injured in the fire, continues to be treated in hospital and is described as being in a critical but stable condition. Their eldest son was also not at home when the tragedy occurred as he was sleeping at a relative's house. Devasted mother Asifa is though to have returned to the UK from her Hajj. Taxi driver Sohaib and his two daughters were pulled from the blazing house by firefighters after it thought a tumble dryer set alight in the kitchen as they slept upstairs. West Yorkshire Police stated: 'Enquiries into the fire remain ongoing by Kirklees District Police on behalf of the coroner.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store