Bunyala fishermen decry rising cases of hippo attacks

Teso

Friday, July 28, 2023

KNA by Absalom Namwalo

Residents of Bunyala have expressed their concern over the increased attacks by hippopotamus as they continue with their daily activities along the beach.

On Monday morning 38-year-old Fredrick Makokha, a known fisherman at Busijo beach survived death after he narrowly escaped death from the jaws of a hippo while returning from a fishing expedition in Lake Victoria.

According to Makokha, he was caught unaware by the hippo capsizing his boat before inflicting injury on his arm, luckily he survived after his colleagues came to his rescue.

Busijo Beach Management chairperson Quito Ouma noted that the incidents are common and are now affecting their economic activities owing that the majority or Bunyala residents depend on fishing as their main economic activity.

“Cases of hippos moving in groups and frequently attacking people are common nowadays, fishermen are always at risk, if you survive the Ugandan army in the lake, you get a hippo to finish you,” noted Ouma.

The residents are now calling on KWS to come to their rescue to address the human-wildlife conflict along the lake which has left many jobless while others injured from the attacks.

“If the government does not intervene we are going to take action as a community. We have lost over 10 lives in the past year as a result of animal attacks in the lake. Let KWS intervene to enable fishermen to stop living in fear,” said Benard Namwe a fisherman at Busijo Beach.

The fishermen have now been forced to readjust their fishing patterns from night to day for fear of their lives.

Namwe however has urged fishermen to be more cautious when carrying out their activities at the lake to curb such attacks.

Courtesy ; K. N. A