Zimbabwean Girl Third In Family To Be Killed By A Crocodile
Crocodiles appear to have developed a taste for a particular Zimbabwean family. Lubelihle Nyoni is the third member of her family to be killed by a crocodile in northern Zimbabwe, after her grandfather and uncle were both killed by a crocodile.
Reportedly, it happened back on February 22, when 3-year-old Lubelihle was playing on the banks of the Zambezi River in Hwange with her friend, 8-year-old Mawili Reno. Apparently, the two friends decided to bathe in the river. A relative, Margi Reno, was busy a few meters away on the river bank.
Feb.22 3yo girl snatched & killed by #crocodile in #Zambezi river #Hwange #Zimbabwe http://t.co/748IYi1MKB pic.twitter.com/3iYZSLtr5L
— ShoreGuard (@ShoreGuard) March 5, 2015
According to IOL, Margi Reno told the Zimbabwean media that she was busy a few meters away from the girls when she heard screaming.
“I was doing something some few meters from the river when I heard screams, before I lifted up my eyes and saw a big crocodile snatching Luba from the banks, where they were bathing.”
“I froze for a moment as my mind could not comprehend what I had seen, but then I recovered and rushed to Mawili, who seemed frozen to the spot.”
According to Times Live, the young girl’s body has not yet been recovered. Villagers in the area said the girl’s grandfather and uncle were also killed by crocodiles in a similar fashion a few years back.
Girl, 3, killed and eaten by crocodile http://t.co/8ZekVdcNBt via @aoltraveluk — Cumbrialassuk (@cumbrialassuk) March 7, 2015
The latest attack is one of three involving juveniles in the country since the beginning of the year. A crocodile snatched a 17-year-old boy who was herding cattle through the Mutirikwi River in southeastern Zimbabwe in February. On New Year’s Day, a 16-year-old was killed by a crocodile in the Runde River, also in southern Zimbabwe.
According to the Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) in Zimbabwe, there was a previous record number of crocodile attacks in the country during the first 10 months of 2005. During that time the reptile attacks were the number one cause of death in humans by wildlife and there were 13 people killed by a crocodile.
Speaking of crocodiles, the Inquisitr reported last month on a strange creature, similar to a crocodile, that was photographed off Plymouth Sound in Devon, England, although in that case some speculated that the creature could be England’s version of the Loch Ness Monster.
[Image: Nile Crocodile courtesy and copyright Anne Sewell]
