American mauled to death by lion lived in Vancouver, was editor on 'Game of Thrones'

SEATTLE -- A 29-year-old American woman mauled to death by a lion in a South African wildlife park was most recently living in Vancouver, B.C., and had worked as a visual effects editor on the popular TV series "Game of Thrones."

The Journal News of Westchester, N.Y., reported  that the mother of victim Katherine "Kate" Chappell, 29, said her daughter was about to start a two-week volunteer stint on a preserve dedicated to saving elephants and rhinoceroses.

Chappell, a native of Rye, N.Y.,  had arrived in South Africa a week early for sightseeing, her mother, Mary Chappell, of Rye, told the newspaper.



She was killed Monday when the lion dragged her from a car as she was riding through a safari park near Johannesburg, South African police said, adding that she had her window down against park policy.

Chappell, a filmmaker who was part of a team that won an Emmy for work on the HBO television series "Game of Thrones," was reportedly filming and photographing lions in the game preserve when the fatal accident occurred, the Journal News said.

Chappell had been living for the past year in Vancouver, B.C., and working for a special-effects company, ScanLine VFX, her mother said, adding that her daughter had also worked on "Pan," a soon-to-be released movie based on Peter Pan.