Belgian tourist trampled to death by elephant in Kenya

A Belgian man on Monday was trampled to death by an elephant in the famous national reserve Masai Mara in Kenya. The 68-year-old retired teacher from Namur, Henry Duchenne, was on his daily walk through the park, which he considered his second home, when “he suddenly came face to face with a solitary elephant he did not know," said his daughter in Het Nieuwsblad. The confrontation with the nervous animal turned out to be fatal for the man.

Duchenne (pictured) regularly posted photos to Facebook of the animals he saw along his morning walk, including giraffes, lions, cheetahs and elephants. "On Monday morning my father went with two friends," said his daughter. "They came across an elephant they had never seen before. The animal was very nervous. So they retraced their steps, and chose a different route.”

The elephant must have then chased the trio and attacked Duchenne, who was found seriously injured. He succumbed to his injuries in the nearby medical centre of Talek, according to a local police officer.

Last month, an Italian tourist was killed by an elephant in Kenya's Tsavo National Park when he wanted to take a picture of the elephant. According to the Kenyan wildlife service, the current drought is forcing wild animals to leave their traditional habitats, which increases the risk of clashes with the local population.