We all know someone who's just totally addicted to taking selfies. Seriously, it can be quite aggravating to spend time with someone that wants to take a selfie everywhere they go: at lunch, on the bus, in church, and even on the toilet. There's no situation where they'll even consider putting their phone away. In fact, they'll doggedly try to snap away with their cameraphone even when they're in a potentially deadly situation. They'll even try to get those sweet, sweet Instagram likes while hanging out with a ravenous wild animal that could tear them to shreds without a thought.
Now you might think that I'm exaggerating here, but I can assure you that that very same situation has actually already happened. This week an unfortunate tourist managed to snap a selfie while posing with a lion at a safari park, shortly before said animal decided to maul her. Thankfully, the woman managed to escape with her life, but the selfie she managed to take is a testament to how close she came to being killed.
Olga Solomina was visiting the Taygan safari park in Crimea, Ukraine, which apparently has extremely lax health and safety rules. A drunken Olga had managed to blag her way into a lion enclosure to get up close and personal with one of the gigantic cats. Under supervision, she crept right up to one of the seemingly-docile lions so she could take a picture with it. But she got far more than she bargained for when it jumped up and grabbed her. Wow; who could possibly have seen this one coming?
Luckily for her, safari park employee Oleg Zubkov was nearby and he managed to chase the lion away. He then drove her to safety and provided her with first aid care.
Commenting on the incident, Olga stated: "I squatted down and put my hand on the lion as I was told. Next moment it grasped my arm and dragged me like a rag doll. The other lions jumped to their feet. I closed my eyes in fear waiting to be torn apart by the pride. It lasted several seconds that felt like eternity for me."
As a result of the wound she sustained from the lion's bite, Olga was taken to the hospital the next day. There, doctors discovered that she had managed to contract a serious infection as a result of the attack. Hospital spokesman Nikolai Vlasov said:
"The infection got into her body from the teeth of the animal. It is a very dangerous infection. She underwent surgery. Her health condition became better, but she needs further treatment. At the moment it's still not clear if she will regain full usage of her arm."
So kids, there's a simple lesson to be learned her. If you're a whisker away from an irate predator, and you're thinking about taking a selfie: don't. In fact, I'd go one step further and insist you just leave the lions well enough alone.
