Child dies in hippo attack
By ALEX NJOVU

From The Zambia Daily Mail,October 2, 2008

A TWO-YEAR old boy has died while his 40 year-old-father is missing after a canoe they were travelling in capsized after it was hit by a hippo in Kitwe’s Kafue river.

Copperbelt police chief Antonneil Mutentwa and Kitwe City Council chief fire officer Joseph Mwape confirmed the incident in separate interviews yesterday.

Mr Mutentwa said the incident happened around 08:00 hours on Tuesday.

He said police and fire brigade officers retrieved the body of the boy but that they had not located the father from the crocodile infested river.

“A two-year and 10 months old boy has been retrieved from the Kafue river while his father has not yet been seen. The two were crossing the river around 08:00 hours on Tuesday when their canoe was hit by a hippo,†Mr Mutentwa said.

Mr Mwape said the hippo is believed to have just given birth and was most likely trying to protect its offspring from intruders.

Meanwhile, people in the area have called on the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) to crop hippos before more lives were lost.

Reverend Bernard Mafale said the animals would kill more people if ZAWA did not put corrective measures in place.

Rev. Mafale said the peasant farmers’ dream of a bumper harvest would not be realised if hippos were not cropped.

He said the incident has instilled fear among the farming community because most of them used canoes to cross the river to get to their fields.

“We are appealing to ZAWA to quickly move in and arrest the situation. They must crop these animals before more lives are lost. It is unfortunate that two lives have been lost.

“It is important that something is done so that people could conduct their business in peace,†Rev. Mafale said.

He commended police and fire brigade officers for retrieving the body of the boy.