Warning: the above video may be distressing for some viewers.
A girl has died after being hit by a rock thrown by an elephant inside a Moroccan zoo.
The seven-year-old had been posing for a photo with her family when she was hit in the back of the head by the large rock hurled by from inside the elephant enclosure, according to the Herald Sun.
She was knocked unconscious and rushed to a nearby hospital where she later died from her injuries.
Rabat Zoo. Source: Google Maps
Footage of the area following the incident filmed by a bystander shows the girl lying on the ground being tended to by zoo staff.
Her distressed family can be heard in the background.
Management of the Rabat Zoo have offered their condolences, adding that such accidents are "rare" and "unforeseeable".
"Accidents of this type are rare, unforeseeable, and unusual. Accidents of this nature happened in international zoos, most recently in Disney World Orlando and the Cincinnati Zoo in the United States," Rabat zoo wrote in a statement.
Questions have been raised on social media about the length of time it took for emergency services to reach the girl as the popular zoo is without an ambulance station.
Top Comments
I had no idea elephants could throw rocks. I wonder if it meant to aim for a human? Anyway, this really is the definition of an unforeseeable, tragic accident.