Community members have been warned to be on the lookout for the five predators as they pose danger.
Spokesperson for the South African Police Services, Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said it is not known how the lions escaped but authorities are searching for them around the area.
Social media reacted to the news:
Five lions on the loose in Mpumalanga, it's not clear where they escaped from, the Parks Board is attending to the matter. #sabcnews pic.twitter.com/PlJhS4XImY
— Mweli Masilela (@mwelimasilela) May 8, 2017
Catch them,don't kill them…The are too many animals going extinct already let's not ad to that tragedy #LionsEscape
— Mlangeni🇿🇦 (@Nkosi_Dlamini_) May 9, 2017
Acting Head of Communications for SANParks, Mr William Mabasa confirmed the incident emphasising that the priority is to catch the lions. ” There are many ways the lions could have escaped as lions are capable of digging under the fence or the fence could have been damaged by elephants, those are just possibilities. What is important is that our rangers continue to hunt for the animals,” Mabasa said.
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