Johannesburg - The company that transported the giraffe that died in Gauteng this week said the bridge the animal hit its head on was too low, the Beeld reported on Saturday.
“We drove at a speed of 48km/h and drove safely under 31 bridges. There was no warning that the Garsfontein bridge was unsafe,” marketing officer for Ditjabe Wildlife Services Dirk Boshoff was quoted as saying.
“I am not here to kill animals. I only transport them.”
He said he drove behind the truck and trailer on Thursday that transported two giraffes from the Meyersdal Eco Estate in Alberton, east of Johannesburg.
The giraffe hit its head while being transported, along with another giraffe, on a truck on the N1 in Pretoria.
Boshoff said regulations were followed, however, engineer for the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project Ken Harrison told Beeld that there was nothing wrong with the bridge and that it met all the legal clearance determinations.
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) is considering laying charges against the driver and said on Friday that it was still investigating and considering charges in terms of the Animal Protection Act.
Sapa