Three hikers have had their legs broken by BABOONS pushing a 130-pound boulder over a cliff as the group rappelled into their territory in South Africa
- Baboons became agitated when they saw seven men rappelling into their territory
- Two walkers climbed off a ledge, but the remaining five came under fire from rocks
- Three walkers who had their legs brutally broken were rescued by helicopter
Three hikers had broken their legs after being attacked by angry baboons who rolled rocks over a cliff at them in South Africa.
The exasperated primates grew agitated when they saw the unusual sight of seven men abseiling down their territory into remote mountains.
The group of seven had reached a narrow ledge near a waterfall in the Banhoek Mountains near Stellenbosch when two of the hikers started to descend.
However, the remaining five suddenly came under fire from a barrage of stones from the baboons above with a 60 kg boulder landing between them.
The giant boulder exploded on impact, sending razor-sharp rock shards flying like shrapnel that broke the legs of three walkers who collapsed in agony.
Three hikers had broken their legs after being attacked by angry baboons in South Africa. Pictured: A rescue worker guides a helicopter into the mountain range
The Cape baboons (similar to above) became agitated when they saw the unusual sight of seven men rappelling across their territory
One of the hikers managed to make an SOS call and a rescue helicopter was deployed to recover the three seriously injured victims
The fourth suffered a flesh wound and the fifth was hit by part of the boulder and almost fell over the edge, but was saved by his safety harness.
But the hikers’ ordeal was far from over, as scores of other rocks rained down on them from the baboons above, forcing them to take shelter at the rock face.
Despite being in such a remote area, one of the walkers managed to make an SOS call for help and the Air Mercy Service helicopter was mobilized.
A Wilderness Search and Rescue team was on board.
The baboons had moved on so that the WSAR paramedics could be hoisted down and placed the most seriously injured victim in a stretcher and hoisted to the helicopter.
They then hoisted the other two men with broken legs to the helicopter and all three were dropped off at a rendezvous point where ambulances were waiting.
The other four made their way back along the cliffs.
WSAR spokesman Johann Marais said: ‘We commend the two uninjured walkers for remaining calm and doing a fantastic job caring for the injured and wish them a speedy recovery’.
Pictured: the narrow ridge on the Banhoek Mountains in Stellenbosch where hikers were forced to take cover to avoid the tumbling rocks
The moment the rescue helicopter took the three seriously injured climbers to a safe landing zone before taking them to hospital
The Cape baboon (pictured above) is one of the world’s largest monkeys and can weigh up to 80 pounds and grow up to four feet tall
A baboon expert who specializes in rescuing primates from urban areas said: ‘Baboons can throw stones, but they can only throw them under their arm.
“Their shoulder blades are at a different angle to the ribs than in humans and are flat in their sides. They have to throw forearms, but can throw really hard.
“Whether they deliberately threw the stones at the walkers or simply loosened them will probably never be known, but that was a lot of stones that came loose accidentally.
Baboons are curious and can get easily upset by things they are not used to and would be used to people walking on cliff paths but not rappelling off.
“It takes a lot to accidentally dislodge a 60 kg boulder,” she said.
All three patients are recovering from their hospitalization.
The Cape baboon is one of the world’s largest monkeys and can weigh up to 80 pounds and grow up to 4 feet long not counting the tail and has 5 inch teeth.
The omnivores can run 30 mph and have up to 50 in a troop and their biggest predator in the wild are leopards, but they only attack when they feel threatened.