A longtime anti-poaching advocate was fatally gored by a double-horned black rhinoceros as he patrolled a reserve in South Africa.

Schoeman van Jaarsveld, 58, the owner of an anti-poaching and rhino protection company, died on April 23 when he was attacked on the Samara Karoo Reserve, the George Herald of South Africa reported.

The reserve is a 67,000-acre protected area located in the heart of South Africa’s Great Karoo region, according to the reserve’s website.

“The Samara directors and staff, Milk River Security and the victim’s family are devastated by the lethal attack that occurred at around 10:30 on Thursday,” the reserve said in a statement.

Van Jaarsveld was traveling on foot with his professional team when the 2,900-pound rhino emerged from cover and charged at him, The Miami Herald reported.

According to the U.S. Sun, the rhino “burst out of cover and impaled him.”

Emergency personnel were summoned to the scene, where van Jaarsveld was pronounced dead, the George Herald reported.

Arno Potgeiter, a field ranger who said he was trained by van Jaarsveld, said that van Jaarsveld “was very good at his job and I was told he was out trying to track down a black rhino.”

“Something went very wrong and they came face to face and my friend was badly gored,” Potgeiter said.

“Another member of the security team was slightly injured. No shots were fired and the black rhino was not hurt. A full investigation is underway into just what happened,” the Samara Karoo Reserve said in a statement.

Van Jaarsveld ran Milk River Security, which provides anti-poaching, security and rhino protection services to several properties in the area, the George Herald reported.

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