Five lions escaped from the Kruger National Park on Monday and police have warned Mpumalanga residents to be vigilant. The lions have been spotted on a farm near Komatipoort and near the N4, with the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Authority leading the operation recapturing the lions.
Twitter was alight with frenzy about the escape when it became known that this is actually a real thing and lives could be in danger.
True to form, South Africans took to Twitter to express their sentiments on the issue and here is a round up of some of the best Tweets on #LionsEscape.
#LionsEscape I'm guessing that the Lion's gate at Kruger National Park was something like this one pic.twitter.com/qXhDVRzi1G
— × Genuine Thato × 👌💯 (@GenuineThato) May 9, 2017
The following tweet is in reference to the South African National Parks spokesman Reynold Thakhuli who reported on Tuesday morning that heavy mist had rolled in‚ making the search difficult.
"Right now the mist is so thick and we think that the lions are in the sugar cane somewhere." he said.
Nywe Nywe "Simba snacks roar with flavour." How about you go make an ad in Mpumalanga just today?#LionsEscapepic.twitter.com/JGe1d8m8Dv
— 👑Clairvoyant👑 (@irvin_stunna) May 9, 2017
@UlrichJvVpic.twitter.com/Bp4KhkHgBW
— Dionisio Pillay (@dionisio_pillay) May 8, 2017
We gotta run, said local residents.
There is never a dull day in SA, especially when you have black twitter on the ball with these matters. This tweet certainly takes the cup. 😂
Black twitter has located some lions. Inspections underway to determine if it's the same ones that escaped pic.twitter.com/oF6xBJ6ImK
— Tumi Sole (@tumisole) May 9, 2017
So, with the big cats still out on the prowl, it is unclear how they may have gotten out of the park to begin with. We hope that as the story develops there will be more clarity on the events that lead to the pride of lions escape. Until then:
In the meantime, motorists and residents in the area have been warned to exercise caution.