A giraffe being driven down a highway in South Africa died on Thursday after its head collided with a low bridge. Witnesses described the horrific scene and posted pictures of the giraffe taken just before the accident to Twitter.

One witness, Pabi Moloi, told Mashable about the scene leading up to the accident:

"My cousin and I were driving in Pretoria on a busy highway when I spotted a pair of giraffes in the back of a truck.

I whipped out my phone to take pictures of this, since it isn't a very common thing to see in the city. As I was getting shots the truck went under a bridge and suddenly one of the giraffes hit its head HARD on the concrete.

The sound was so loud that my cousin, who was driving, asked me if there was someone shooting because she thought she'd heard a gunshot!"

...

That sound of a skull being hit and the force with which it threw the giraffes head forward is something I won't easily forget."

A local SPCA spokesman confirmed to News 24 that the incident was under investigation. "The SABS has published a code for wildlife transport, and it would appear that the open transport with the giraffes' head sticking out is not acceptable," Rick Allen of the Tshwana SPCA said.

"Their heads were above the vehicle which meant that one of them cracked their head one the bridge," he added to NBC News. "That's something we are very concerned about and we will be looking at a prosecution under animal cruelty legislation."

[Image via Pabi Moloi]