Namibia: Caprivi in Anthrax Scare



New Era (Windhoek)

2 September 2008
Posted to the web 2 September 2008

Reagan Malumo
Katima Mulilo

A mysterious disease believed to be anthrax is exerting a grim toll on Caprivi's elephant herd, wiping out large numbers of these majestic wild animals particularly in the area of Nakabolelwa, about 90 kilometres east of Katima Mulilo.

A village headman at Nakabolelwa told New Era that last month at least four elephants succumbed to the mysterious disease in that area.


He said several other cases were also confirmed at a nearby settlement in Botswana and that it is suspected that the elephants might be dying from anthrax.

If this disease is indeed anthrax, it can easily spread to cattle and can easily be transmitted to humans where it causes severe skin ulceration or a form of pneumonia.

Though officials from the Ministry of Environment and Tourism at Katima Mulilo could not confirm the incidents, they have promised to dispatch a team of rangers to investigate the matter. A State veterinarian at Katima Mulilo, Frank Chitate, told New Era that his office might consider collecting samples on the carcasses for a scientific investigation.

There was an outbreak of anthrax in the same area two years ago and hundreds of livestock and wild animals were killed. There is mounting fear among some farmers from that area that should the disease be confirmed to be anthrax, it could be catastrophic for their livestock that also face a threat from foot-and-mouth disease.

According to the headman, some residents might have fed on the elephant meat. He said the carcasses are still left unburied posing danger to both livestock and humans.

Meanwhile, Chitate warned that should the elephant have died from anthrax, there is danger that if people eat the meat, they might as well have contracted the deadly disease. He said should the carcasses be left unburied, the disease would spread faster.

Meanwhile, residents of Nakabolelwa have also complained of mounting conflict between wild animals and people in the area. The numbers of wild animals particularly elephants have increased drastically in the area causing problems and curtailing the free movement of people who are afraid of being trampled by the free-roaming jumbos.

"We are even scared to walk from one village to the other because we might bump into an elephant," complained one resident.

The elephant population has been increasing year after year in Caprivi, mainly due to an increasing number of conservancy areas in the region.

Some residents at Malindi, about 70 kilometres east of Katima Mulilo complained on the local Silozi NBC actuality show about the increasing number of elephants in the area. They said elephants pose danger to cattle herders in that area.

"We were just accepting to have conservancies in our areas without realising that we were tying ropes around our necks," complained one caller.


Last year, several people were killed by elephants at different locations in the region. People are scared the same might happen again this year if corrective measures are not implemented.

The extreme overpopulation of elephants in Chobe National Park has led to the elephants having to cross the river into Namibia, where they raid the gardens. The Caprivi has anthrax episodes commonly.