In an astonishing twist of fate that reads like a modern-day fable, a truck driver near Hanoi credits his life to three red foxes who seemingly warned him of a catastrophic landslide just moments before he would have driven straight into it.
The incredible incident, highlighting the mysterious wisdom of wildlife, unfolded on a treacherous mountain pass yesterday.
Mr. Le Van Thinh, an experienced hauler navigating the winding, often unpredictable roads of rural Vietnam, was on a late-afternoon delivery run.
As he rounded a blind bend, his headlights caught an unusual sight: three red foxes, typically reclusive and wary of humans, behaving in an exceptionally frantic manner directly in his path.
They were barking intensely, scampering back and forth, and looking intently towards something further up the road, then back at his approaching truck.
"I've driven these roads for years, and I've seen foxes before, but never like this," Mr. Thinh recounted, still visibly shaken. "They weren't just crossing; they were jumping, yelping, almost like they were trying to get my attention, trying to tell me something."
Intrigued and a little unnerved by their persistent commotion, Mr. Thinh instinctively slowed his heavy vehicle, a decision that proved to be life-saving.
He edged forward cautiously, his high beams piercing the deepening twilight. What he saw next sent a chill down his spine: the road ahead, for a stretch of dozens of meters, had completely vanished.
A fresh, massive landslide had obliterated the asphalt, leaving behind a chaotic cascade of earth, rocks, and uprooted trees.
"If I had been going just a little faster, or hadn't stopped, I would have driven right off the cliff with that slide," he said, his voice trembling. "There was no warning sign, nothing. Those foxes... they saved my life."
Emergency services were immediately alerted, and the treacherous section of the road was cordoned off. Geologists and road engineers confirmed the severity of the landslide, noting that it had occurred very recently and would have been impossible to see until one was dangerously close.
While scientists might attribute the foxes' behavior to mere instinct or territorial agitation, Mr. Thinh and local villagers are convinced it was a deliberate, protective act. "They were guardians," stated a local elder, gazing at the now-closed road. "Nature has its ways of speaking, and sometimes, if you listen, it can save you."
The incredible tale of the three foxy forewarners has quickly spread across the region, becoming a poignant reminder of the unexpected intelligence and profound connections that can exist between humans and the natural world.
For Mr. Thinh, it's a debt he can never repay, a testament to the quiet heroes that sometimes emerge from the wild to prevent unimaginable tragedy.
