A couple had to be rescued last weekend after becoming embroiled in a fight with Basotho shepherds on the last day of their 10-day hike in the Drakensberg mountains,
It is alleged that the shepherds assaulted them on Walker’s Peak near Bushmen’s Nek last Saturday.
The couple managed to escape and sent an SOS message using their smart watches, before setting up camp nearby and waiting for help.
Rescue operations by the Mountain Club of South Africa (MCSA) and Mountain Search and Rescue (MSAR) were delayed, because the couple could not be rescued by helicopter due to altitude conditions, and a ground team could only reach them after sunrise.
MCSA said that after re-evaluating its options, a Bell Jet Ranger helicopter was used to airlift medics to the hikers before the man was flown to an awaiting ambulance and transferred to Life Hilton Private Hospital.
MCSA said the shepherds focused on the man, who sustained multiple injuries during the altercation.
President of the MSCA in KwaZulu-Natal, Carl Dreyer, told News24 that it was ‘extremely rare’ for hikers to report instances of such a nature.
‘This area is not particularly treacherous or dangerous. By far, most of these calls are for standard search-and-rescue incidents, like missing persons, injuries from falling, or other outdoor-related incidents’, Dreyer said.
[Image: Margy Sneeden from Pixabay]