By Enyichukwu Enemanna
A Zimbabwean boy, aged 8, has been rescued alive after five days in a game park inhabited by about 40 lions and elephants in the country’s northern region, a member of Parliament announced.
Tinotenda Pudu had wandered 23 km from home into the “dangerous” Matusadona Game Park after missing his way, Mutsa Murombedzi, who represents Mashonaland West in Parliament, said on X.
He spent five days “sleeping on a rocky perch, amidst roaring lions, passing elephants, eating wild fruits,” she stated in the social media post.
Matusadona Game Park at one time had one of the highest lion population densities in Africa, BBC reports, quoting African Parks.
The boy used his knowledge of the wild and survival skills to stay alive, Murombedzi stated.
Tinotenda was said to have survived his ordeal by eating wild fruit.
To access water, he also dug small wells into dry riverbeds with a stick, a skill taught in the drought-prone region.
A search party was organised by members of the local Nyaminyami community, who beat drums daily, attempting to guide the wandering boy back home. However, he was later found by park rangers.
According to the member of parliament, on the fifth day in the park, Tinotenda heard a ranger’s car and ran towards it, but narrowly missed it.
Luckily for him, however, the rangers returned, spotted “fresh little human footprints,” and searched the area until they found him.
“This was probably his last chance of being rescued after five days in the wilderness,” the MP said.
Heritage Times HT gathered that the park, covering over 1,470 sq km, is home to zebras, elephants, hippos, lions, and antelope.
Social media users have praised the young Zimbabwean for his skills in surviving the perilous park.
