SWAZI OBSERVER (Mbabane, Swaziland) 01 March 07 Woman mouled by crocodile (Thabile Masuku)
Barely eight days after a Siphofaneni woman survived a crocodile attack at the Great Usuthu River, another was unlucky when a similar reptile had her for breakfast yesterday.
It took a brave manager from the nearby Mbuluzi Game Reserve to help recover the body of 32-year-old Zodwa Shiba as police divers allegedly panicked and refused to dive into the crocodile-infested Mbuluzi River.
Matthew McGinn shot the crocodile to death after getting special permission from the Big Game Parks.
Only on Saturday, a cow survived a crocodile attack from the same river and it is suspected that it is the same one that killed Shiba. A little girl was also attacked and died in the same river. a few months ago.
McGinn told this newspaper that it was around 7:30am when rangers noticed a lot of people around the Mbuluzi River and immediately called him on the radio on suspicion of a crocodile attack.
“We went there but by then it was an hour since the woman had been caught by the crocodile. We decided to do a quick check around the river, hoping that we would be lucky and find the woman even though we had already suspected she was dead. We looked around, but we couldn’t come across anything.
‘Later, we decided to take a small boat from the reserve and someone called me on the radio to say that the community had, at some point, seen a big crocodile where the woman had disappeared.
“They suspected it was the same crocodile. Together with George Mbatha from Big Game Parks proceeded to the spot in question. It was then that we were able to see the crocodile slightly protruding in the river, he explained.
McGinn and Mbatha searched the water and found the body at least 300 metres from where Shiba had been mauled, with her left arm missing. The crocodile was next to the same spot. It was at that stage that he decided to shoot, hoping it was the same one that had killed Shiba.
“We had to be careful because we didn’t want to shoot any crocodile,’ McGinn said.
“He hit the crocodile on the head. It somersaulted before sinking into the river and we assumed it had been killed.
By late yesterday, its body had still not emerged from the water even thought it had been spotted underneath the reed inside the river.
McGinn said it was now entirely up to the Big Game Parks and His Majesty to decide what do with the crocodile’s body.
“We will try to retrieve the remains of Shiba’s arm, he said.
He, however, warned the community to be extra cautious-advising them to look for an alternative source of water.
“I just want to say we feel very sorry for her family, but we hope people won’t kill the crocodiles because they are an endangered species, he said.
“We just need to learn to live with them. The Maphiveni community needs put their heads together for purposes of identifying safe areas to draw water.
“If they need funding from government, they can do so or fence certain parts of the river because more people are building homes around the river.”
Meanwhile, the deceased’s brother Vusie said his sister was in the company of her younger sister, Zandile Khoza when she met her death.
“It was around 7am and they met a woman along the way who told them to be careful of the crocodiles and carry some stones with them to the river. Normally, we throw these stones to determine if there are any crocodiles around. So, they threw these stones but there was no indication that any crocodile was around. My elder sister (deceased) told my younger sister to stand aside as she drew the water with a container. At that point, the crocodile emerged and grabbed her hand. When Zandile tried to save her, the crocodile hit her with its tail and she fell into the river. That was the last time she saw her,” she said.
Shiba leaves behind three children. Her family is still confused about how to bury her as there are no sufficient funds to conduct the funeral.
“We took her body to Good Shepherd Hospital in Siteki but the mortuary was full, hence we had to take it to Crucifix funeral undertakers. We are yet to meet as a family to see how we can conduct the funeral but we would appreciate any help from the nation,î Vusie said.
Anyone willing to help the family can call the deceased’s uncle Jimson Dladla at 622-7759 or her cousin December at 618-4731.
Police Public Relations Officer Superintendent Vusi Masuku confirmed the incident.
Woman mouled by crocodile