Watch: Wild cheetahs enter tourist's car on safari

Watch: Wild cheetahs enter tourist's car on safari
Copyright Facebook/ElisaJaffe
By Sallyann Nicholls
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Britton Hayes got more than he bargained for on safari when two wild cheetahs pounced on his vehicle.

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Britton Hayes got more than he bargained for on safari when two wild cheetahs pounced on his vehicle.

He was enjoying spring break with his step-uncle, who works for Grand Ruaha Safaris in Tanzania, when the tense encounter took place.

One of the animals sat on the bonnet while the other clambered inside the vehicle and looked around. They lingered for 10 minutes before they lost interest and went on their way.

Sharing the nerve-wracking footage on Facebook, Hayes’ mother Elisa exclaimed: “Thank goodness the guide helped my kid remain calm (even though he was scared to death) and avoid eye contact until the cheetah no longer saw him as a threat.”

She confirmed Britton was not harmed during the incident.

Cheetahs are the fastest land animals on the planet and can accelerate from zero to 96.5kph in three seconds, but attacks against humans are extremely rare. Two of the most recent attacks involved animals that were kept in captivity: In 2017, a toddler was mauled to death by a cheetah in South Africa when its enclosure was left open, and in 2007, a visitor was killed by a pack of cheetahs in a Belgian zoo after she entered their compound without permission.

Video editor • Alice Cuddy

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