A woman has been mauled to death by a lioness at a private game reserve north of South Africa’s administrative capital, Pretoria, a local emergency service reports.

Netcare 911 spokesman Nick Dollman said the service had responded to a call of a lioness attack in Hammanskraal town.

“Tragically, the victim had sustained severe injuries and she died at the scene,” Mr Dollman said.

It is unclear what led to the attack.

Mr Dollman said that bystanders had tried to revive the victim, identified as a 22-year-old woman, by initiating CPR [cardiopulmonary resuscitation].

He did not identity the private lodge where the attack happened but said it was just outside of the Dinokeng Nature Reserve in Hammanskraal town.

The reserve describes itself as the first free-roaming residential game reserve for the “big five” African animals next to an urbanised area.