Here's What Happened When a Family's Car Caught Fire in the Middle of a Lion Safari

A mother and her two children are safe after escaping an explosive car fire and a den of roaming lions.

Helen Clements, 43, and her two kids, ages nine and 12, were driving through the "Deadly Safari" tour at Longleat Safari Park in England last Friday when her minivan started to overheat and smoke. After she began to honk her horn to attract the attention of park rangers, the engine burst into flames.

"We then thought we had better get out of the car, but obviously the rangers were saying get back in the car," she told CBS News. A dozen lions freely roam that section of the park, where they interact with drivers, look into car windows, and often rub up against passing cars.

As the flames grew, Clements decided to ignore the rangers' advice. She quickly ushered her kids out of the minivan. The driver behind her caught the engulfing fire on camera and tweeted this image:

Another driver caught the fire on video:

None of the other park visitors tried to help the Clementses—probably because they were all frightened of the lions, which were hovering fewer than 100 yards away.

The family briefly panicked as they exited the vehicle, and Clements' nine-year-old son tried to run away. A full minute passed before park rangers drove up and ushered the escapees into their own truck. "Literally as he opened the door we just jumped into his vehicle," Clements told ABC News.

"Our main concern was being able to get to the car safely while inside a lion enclosure," said a Longleat spokesperson in a statement. "The lions were cleared from the enclosure, and the safari park was closed. No one was injured in any way, and no lions were hurt."

Despite the incident, Clements told Sky News that she would like to return to the park one day. "You can look back on it now and thank goodness we are all safe, but why did it have to be in the lion enclosure, of all places?"