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.
Bu hikaye YOU South Africa dergisinin 17 September 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye YOU South Africa dergisinin 17 September 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
PUSHED TO THE LIMIT
The unusual relationship between an heiress and her husband has taken a sinister twist
HOW TO MAKE A SUPERBABY
Noor Siddiqui says her company can test embryos for hundreds of conditions from diabetes to Alzheimer's. Critics call it social engineering but she insists she's just giving prospective parents the means to avoid a lot of future heartache
THE GROWN-UP BRAIN
If you think your brain deteriorates as you age, think again!
THE eyes HAVE IT
They're the windows to our soul - and the first place to show the stresses of everyday life. Juliette Winter reveals expert tips to de-puff, brighten and smooth this delicate area
WE'RE IN THIS TOGETHER
It hasn't been an easy road but now this bodybuilding couple are making waves in the industry
I CAN'T WAIT FOR SUMMER!
Annetjie's about to get effective treatment for the skin condition that has blighted her life and she's looking forward to hitting the shops and facing the world
'SHE NO THREAT TO ANYONE'
When SA boxer Chris van Heerden's Russian girlfriend went to visit her parents she was thrown in jail and accused of treasonnow he's in a fight to free her
SUNK IN 16 MINUTES!
A sun-drenched holiday turned into a living nightmare for those aboard this luxury vessel
READY TO SMILE AGAIN
A groundbreaking surgical procedure will restore this Limpopo teen's badly damaged jaw and teeth
HARRY AT A CROSSROADS
As the prince turns 40, royal experts paint a picture of a troubled soul- isolated, homesick and struggling to find a purpose in life