South Africa Lion Attack Victim Identified As Rye Native
RYE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- The body of a Westchester County native who was killed in a lion attack was being flown back home Wednesday night from South Africa.
As CBS2's Lou Young reported, Katherine Chappell, a native of Rye, was killed Monday while riding on a safari outside Johannesburg. The incident happened in a place called Lion Park.
Chappell was a passenger in the vehicle driven by a guide at the park, when a white lioness approached her and bit through an open window.
The windows of her vehicle were apparently down when a the lion attacked, despite signs warning visitors to "Keep Windows Closed At All Times" at the popular lion park.
South Africa Lion Attack Victim Identified As Rye Woman
"It walked quite slowly towards the car and stopped roughly a meter away," the park's assistant operations manager, Scott Simpson, said. "The lady was busy taking pictures of it. The lion then lunged at the car, and it bit the lady through the window."
The driver of the white sport-utility vehicle tried to save the woman, but reportedly suffered a heart attack during the incident, CBS2's Young reported.
Chappell, who was on a volunteer mission for a wildlife protection group, died of her wounds. Park officials emphasized that opening doors or windows to take photos is a dangerous idea.
"I think for the internationals, they do sometimes come here with the idea it is a bit of Disney World thing where these are tame lions, and I think that is a problem," said assistant operations manager Scott Simpson. "I think it does need to be stressed that these are still wild animals, even if they were born in captivity."
Chappell is a well-regarded video editor for movies and television, winning an Emmy Award last year for her work on "Game of Thrones."
She studied film at Hofstra University and moved to Vancouver to do visual effects, working on big budget productions, including the HBO series "Game of Thrones" and the movies "Captain America," "Divergent" and "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," WCBS 880's Sean Adams reported.
In Rye, police kept reporters away from Chappell's parents' home at their request.
Her sister posted a brief tribute online.
"Katie was a brilliant, kind, adventurous and high-spirited woman," wrote Jennifer Chappell. "Her energy and passion could not be contained by mere continents or oceans."
People in Rye were all talking about the tragedy.
"You heard all about it, but then you hear, 'from Rye,' it's just really shocking," said Rye resident Sara Falcone.
"You know, you're on vacation you should be able to enjoy life. It's just a shame," one resident told 1010 WINS' Al Jones.
The victim has not lived in Rye for years, but her name seemed immediately familiar to long-time residents -- shocked at the mention of their town in connection with so shocking an incident so far away.
"She was a wonderful person, a very talented and loving person from a very kind family," neighbor Lisa McIntyre said. "This is very tragic."
"I hear the name, and I had a close friend from Tampa, of all places, email me early this morning and said someone from your town was just yanked from the planet. It's just awful," said Tim O'Neil of Rye. "Such a career behind her and so much promise in the future -- it's really sad; devastating."
South Africa Lion Attack Victim Identified As Rye Native
The driver and tour guide who came to Chappell's aid was not seriously injured, and the animal involved will not be euthanized, CBS2 was told.
This was the second such incident at the park involving an unauthorized open window, but the previous victim survived the attack.
The wake for Chappell is scheduled for Friday at Graham's Funeral Home, at 1036 Boston Post Rd. in Rye. Funeral services are scheduled for Saturday.
