WILDLIFE CONFLICT: Hyena Kills 4-Year-Old Boy Prompting Juja Residents To Block Thika Road
A four-year-old boy was mauled by a hyena on Wednesday at Flat Estate in the Nyacaba area of Witeithie, Juja.
This is the latest incident in the area, prompting calls for authorities to address the problem.
Police said the boy’s body was discovered long after he had been killed and partially consumed by the wild animal.
Angry locals staged a protest on Thursday, blocking the busy Thika Highway for several hours.
HAPPENING NOW
— Omwamba 🇰🇪 (@omwambaKE) September 5, 2024
Juja residents are currently demonstrating along Thika Road.
They have blocked a section of Thika Road at Ndarugu after a 4-year-old boy was mauled by a hyena yesterday! pic.twitter.com/TSvX9B4c4C
Juja residents hold protests and block a section of Thika Road at Ndarugo area after a 4-year-old boy was mauled by a hyena. pic.twitter.com/rz6pLibLgx
— The Eastleigh Voice (@Eastleighvoice) September 5, 2024
They demanded action to combat the threat. The residents promised to eliminate all hyenas in the area.
Police responded by using tear gas canisters to disperse the protesters who had used stones to block the road.
“We want armed officers to accompany us and shoot the hyenas after we flush them out,” an angry resident said.
Multi-agency teams have been formed to track down and capture the hyena.
Juja residents hold demonstrations and block a section of Thika Road at Ndarugo area after a 4-year-old boy was mauled by a hyena. pic.twitter.com/GLua4LTMEu
— PAPA FATHELA ESQ (@AmControo) September 5, 2024
Last month, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua announced that the government would track down and capture hyenas that were mauling people and causing anxiety in Kiambu County’s Juja estates.
Gachagua stated that the government will send a team of security personnel, including those from the Kenya Wildlife Service, to the area to drive out the wild animals and address the threat in light of the increased attacks.
He attributed the rise in hyena attacks in Juja to abandoned quarries, which the hyenas could use as hiding places before attacking the residents.
“We have gathered from KWS Director-General that the problem of hyenas in Juja is also the abandoned quarry sites. The death incidents are worrisome,” the DP said.
“We are sending a team to capture the hyenas and relocate them so that they do not become a menace. The quarries are also a security threat and can be breeding area for mosquitoes,” Gachagua continued.
He was responding to Juja MP George Koimburi’s call for the government to intervene after a 52-year-old woman was mauled and killed by a hyena recently.
Juja residents hold demos, block section of Thika Road in protest after a 4-year-old boy was mauled by a hyena pic.twitter.com/Xu9r7YtlNI
— Kenyans.co.ke (@Kenyans) September 5, 2024
The legislator stated that over the last five months, wild animals have killed several people, including children.
Dennis Teya, 10, was mauled to death by hyenas in the neighboring village of Gwa Kigwi earlier this year.
This is an example of the wildlife-human conflict that is common in areas near national parks. Many wild animals wander from major parks into villages.
KWS has launched a campaign to combat the menace, which includes fencing the areas.
The government and conservation organizations have established a compensation program for people and herders whose livestock is killed by wild animals.
Officials stated that habitat loss and climate change threatened the number of wild animals in the wild and that their future looked “bleak”.
WILDLIFE CONFLICT: Hyena Kills 4-Year-Old Boy Prompting Juja Residents To Block Thika Road
