![]() Oberle's mother, Mary Flint, said Friday that her son knew the risks of working with chimps and would not want them blamed for the attack. "He was a real inspiration to the children he worked with and extremely well-liked and respected," zoo spokeswoman Susan Gallagher said Saturday. He said his nephew had returned to South Africa to study the animals that were his "passion." He noted the young man previously worked for several years as a camp counselor at the St. "It is a hard time right now for our family," said Carl Oberle, who did not want to discuss details of his nephew's condition. Oberle's uncle, Carl Oberle, told The Associated Press on Saturday that Oberle's parents were on their way to South Africa. Oberle underwent surgery at the hospital Thursday. Mediclinic Nelspruit hospital said Saturday that the 26-year-old Oberle remained in critical condition in intensive care. Cussons said it was unclear why Oberle had moved so dangerously close. The chimps then grabbed him and pulled him under the second fence, which is electrified. Cussons said Oberle was given additional training before addressing the tour group.Ĭussons said Oberle broke the rules by going through the first of two fences that separate humans from the chimps. As a researcher, Cussons said Oberle had been trained to ensure he understood how the animals might behave and knew to keep a safe distance. The student had arrived last month for a follow-up visit after an extended stay to observe the chimps a year or so ago, Cussons said. ![]() The two chimps that attacked Oberle were male, though the sanctuary's website did not say how large the animals were.Ĭussons said it was the first time he had asked Oberle to speak to visitors. Male chimps can stand up to 1.7 meters (5 feet, 7 inches) tall and weigh about 70 kilograms (154 pounds), according to the Jane Goodall institute. Cussons said one of the chimps was injured in the scuffle, and he was awaiting a veterinarian's report to determine the nature and extent of the injury. Oberle was bitten repeatedly and dragged for nearly a kilometer (half mile). In the end, Cussons, who was himself attacked by a chimp as he tried to pull it off Oberle, took the extreme step of firing into the air, scaring the animals away. Oberle had been giving a lecture and tried to separate the chimps from Oberle. "But when it actually happens, it's shocking and traumatic for everyone."Ĭussons's team quickly evacuated the dozen tourists to whom Andrew F. "You can train for it, you can do your best to prepare," Cussons said. It was the first such attack since Cussons, working with Goodall's renowned international institute, converted part of his family's game farm into the sanctuary in 2006. In telephone interview Saturday, Cussons said he would have to wait until the severely injured victim, a University of Texas at San Antonio graduate student inspired by famed primatologist Jane Goodall to study chimps, was well enough to provide details about Thursday's attack. And Cussons, host of the Animal Planet show "Escape to Chimp Eden," is without an explanation. This time, though, the attack was at his own Jane Goodall Institute Chimpanzee Eden in South Africa. Cussons says he always could pinpoint a moment of taunting or perceived aggression that could have set off the quick and powerful animals. JOHANNESBURG - In the six years he's managed a sanctuary for abused and orphaned chimpanzees, South African conservationist Eugene Cussons is from time to time called on to comment when an ape somewhere in the world attacks a human.
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