Staff Reporter
THE Ministry of Environment and Tourism has confirmed a second attack on campers by a lioness that was put down after killing nature conservationist Bernd Kebbel (59), who was holidaying with his wife and friends near Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp in the Sesfontein area, Kunene Region.
It has now surfaced that the lioness, which mauled Kebbel to death after he descended from the roof tent of his car to relieve himself in the early hours of Friday, 30 April 2025, had continued on a rampage and attacked another group of campers from South Africa, who were also camping in the Hoanib River near where Kebbel had been killed.
Video: Some scenes from the second attack on campers.
“Yes, the lion attacked another family before it was put down. After the first attack, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism staff remained and went around advising all campers to leave, as the area was no longer safe. However, they refused to leave, insisting they had camped there for years, so campers that were still in the area were there at their own risk,” Ndeshipanda Hamunyela, spokesperson for the Environment Ministry, said.
He, however, added that the Environment Ministry is not aware of any injuries that may have transpired in the second attack.
Video footage obtained by Informanté shows how the lioness, which had been marked as an animal that posed a danger to humans, tried to tear up tents of other campers in the area after killing Kebbel, piercing and ripping the fabric of tents as she looked for another kill.
Kebbel, the former owner of the Off-Road Centre, is reported to have supported the Desert Lion Conservation, which manages human-lion conflict in the arid environment of the Kunene Region—a task the organisation said is very complex.
