Impala escaped cheetahs by jumping into tourists’ car

A distressed impala, which was running for his life, was captured on camera jumping into a car full of tourists to escape cheetahs.

09:39 13 July 2013

A panic-stricken impala, which was considered seconds away from death in a South African safari park, was captured on camera as it managed to escape cheetahs by jumping inside a car full of tourists.

The animal jumped through an open window on the passenger side of a Toyota Prado.

The whole daring escape was filmed by onlooker Samantha Pittendrigh. She said: “We saw the impala jump out of the bushes and then someone started screaming, “It is in the car, it is in the car.”

“We heard a little girl screaming in the car.

“A boy filming outside the car looked a lot younger, so it must have been a family.

“People in other cars screamed, ‘Open the door, open the door’.”

One passenger opened the door and the impala trotted across the road. The incident happened in Kruger National Park where visitors are not allowed to leave their vehicles.