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Nairobi Star (Nairobi)


Kenya: Man Fights for Life in Voi Hospital After Attack By Leopard

By Raphael Mwadime, 6 March 2012



A man is fighting for his life in a Taita hospital after he was attacked by a leopard at his home in Wundanyi constituency. The leopard injured Mwasighwa Ndighila, 56, at his home in Mwasinenyi village, Kishushe location, a week ago. Speaking at Moi Hospital in Voi where he was admitted in critical condition, Ndighila told the Star the leopard also killed his goat. "The leopard attacked and injured me on the head when I tried to rescue my goats on the fateful night," he said.

He said leopard attacks are common in the area, which borders the Tsavo West National Park. Human-wildlife conflict is rife in the area, where locals are in dispute with the Kenya Wildlife Service. Residents resisted KWS' plan to put an electric fence to keep off the animals, saying it wanted to grab their land.

Accoding to KWS officers in the area, the electric fence is the lasting solution to the persistent human-wildlife conflict. Senior warden in charge of Tsavo West National Park, Samuel Rukaria, said the leopard attack had not been reported to KWS. He called on the residents to report any wildlife attacks in the region so that necessary action is taken. "We have not received the report. We call on the public to report any attacks by wildlife in their regions for compensation purposes," he said.

Last year, cases of leopard attacks were reported in Taita hills where wild animals are rare to find. In another rare incident, a leopard strayed into a health centre at Mghange location but was immediately killed by the villagers at the hospital. Similar cases were reported in Mbale area where farmers lost several goats through leopard attacks. KWS officers said that the leopard could have moved to human settlement areas in search of easy prey since they were old and could not chase other faster wildlife in the parks.