Watch a Ford Ranger Square Off Against a Raging Hippo
Charging mammal takes pickup truck head-on in surreal cell phone video.
Modern roadways are full of hazards. Distracted drivers, garbage and debris, the occasional collapsing bridge. Animals, too. Who hasn’t had a close call on a narrow two-lane, when something dumb, hoofed, and antlered jumps out at the least opportune moment? The best thing that can be said of deer and elk is that they aren’t hippopotamus.
Yes, hippos. Those greyish, four-toed mammals can get up to 4,000 pounds, and charge at speeds nearing 20 mph. And, as Wikus Ceronie learned the hard way, that combination can do serious damage to a car or truck.
Ceronie is a welding inspector from South Africa. While returning home from a work assignment in Mozambique, the 26-year old noticed a hippo milling around an overpass near Kruger National Park. He relayed the following story on the exotic animal spotter’s blog LatestSightings:
“There were people walking around in the nearby vicinity so I automatically assumed this hippo was used to humans. I was quite fascinated by this so I took out my phone to start filming. Suddenly the hippo turned and just started charging… I braced myself as I realized he wasn’t going to stop.”
According to Ceronie, the hippo proceeded to crash into his white Ford Ranger diesel pickup head-on, then tried biting it. He supposes the animal “decided [it] had won,” because it turned around and lumbered off.
“Beside me was a 50m (165 ft.) drop so had he hit me on the side I have no doubt the car would have rolled down the embankment. Even though there was damage done to the bonnet of my vehicle and the door couldn’t open, I’m grateful there were no serious injuries at the end of day.”
Check out Ceronie’s surreal video footage of the incident below.
