British travel YouTuber Charles Wright was shot in the foot by gunmen before driving hundreds of miles with a bullet lodged in his heel during a road trip through Ethiopia.
Wright, who shares his journeys under the name CharlesWorldTravel, was exploring the country alone in his one-liter Toyota Yaris when two armed men attempted to stop him near Kobo.
The 40-year-old initially slowed down but accelerated after spotting one of the men preparing an AK-47. The gunman then reportedly ran behind the vehicle and fired twice.
One round struck the road, ricocheted through the bottom of the car and became lodged in Wright’s right heel, which was resting on the accelerator.
“This is the moment my life changed,” he wrote.
Wright said he did not immediately realize he had been shot because he had fractured the same foot while playing soccer earlier that day. He continued driving for roughly 24 hours, covering around 300 miles with the bullet still inside him.
The shooting was only the beginning of what Wright called the “worst four weeks of my life.”
While following Google Maps near Awash, he took a wrong turn and encountered two federal police officers. Wright claims they opened fire on his tires, forcing him to drive another two-and-a-half miles before becoming stranded in the desert.
He said other officers later confiscated his phone and forced him to run despite his fractured foot and gunshot wound.
Wright eventually underwent surgery at Dawa Haya Hospital, where doctors successfully removed the bullet. However, he claims a power outage struck during the two-hour operation, leaving staff to continue using phone flashlights for around ten minutes.
His ordeal reportedly continued after surgery. Wright claims he was held at a hotel for six days with an armed officer stationed outside and was jailed three times during his 32-day stay.
charlesworldtravel“There were several moments during Ethiopia when I genuinely wondered whether I would make it out,” he said.
“By the time I finally crossed into Kenya, I was completely emotionally exhausted. I never thought a border crossing could feel so much like freedom.”
Wright stressed that he met several Ethiopians who helped him and accepted responsibility for entering an active conflict zone. He is now recovering and plans to spend several months repairing his foot and Yaris before resuming his travels.
Wright is not the first creator to face gun violence while crossing Africa. In 2023, YouTuber Russ Cook and his crew were robbed at gunpoint during his record-setting run across the continent.
I’m Abhishek Sharma, an author at TigerJek.com. I enjoy exploring games, testing different strategies, and turning what I learn into clear, useful guides. My goal is to help players understand the game better and improve without the usual confusion.
