Dawn hippo attack in dam leaves girl dead

By Joseph Muchiri

EMBU, KENYA: A girl was on Monday morning mauled to death by a hippopotamus as she fetched water from Masinga dam in Kaseveni village, Mbeere South District.

?Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officer in charge of Embu and Kirinyaga counties Cornelius Muoka said the same hippo had killed three other people and injured two others in three months.

Maria Wayua was attacked at 6am while heading home from the dam to prepare breakfast before going to school.

Muoka said the hippo ambushed the Standard Four pupil at Kaseveni Primary?School in a secluded area.

KWS officers then camped near the dam to track the hippo but were unsuccessful.

“We have been trying to shoot the killer hippo but every time it dives into the dam. We are still searching for it,” said Muoka.

The body was taken to Embu Provincial General Hospital mortuary.

Many people have died in the area from attacks by crocodiles and hippos from the dam.

KWS has started piping water in a Sh5 million project, while the government of Hungary has initiated a similar project to protect lives.