OAN’s Elizabeth Volberding
4:27 PM – Tuesday, February 6, 2024
The Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) announced that one person was killed and two people were severely injured by a hyena near a university in Rongai, Kenya, prompting student protests calling for heightened safety measures on campus.
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After the murder of a man and the injuries of two others by roving hyenas close to a university outside of Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, hundreds of students from the institution blocked the streets in protest of what they perceived as inadequate security.
On Tuesday, the aggravated university students protested and caused traffic disruptions there while police dispersed them with tear gas. They blocked Magadi Road with rocks and started bonfires, making it impossible to travel.
“The university is not safe because we are near the national park,” said Ochieng Kefah, a student at Kenya’s Multimedia University, who was one of the student demonstrators. “The government should, maybe, put some restrictions on the movement of the animals.”
On Monday night around 8:00 p.m., hyenas attacked the individuals, killing one person and injuring two others in the Ole Kasasi area of Rongai, Kajiado County.
A student at Kenya’s Multimedia University was among the injured when the hyenas attacked him.
The wounded student was identified as an engineering student named Kevin Mwendwa, 21, who lost a thumb in the incident.
“Upon receiving reports, KWS promptly deployed the Problem Animal Management Unit (PAMU), who rushed the men to Wema Hospital in Rongai. The injured were then referred to The Kenyatta National Hospital for specialized treatment after First Aid was administered,” a statement from authorities read.
The Kenya Wildlife Service reported that a team dispatched to investigate the scene of Monday’s attack discovered the body parts of another hyena victim.
Stephen Romo, the second individual attacked by the hyena, was identified shortly after. He is a resident of Olmeut village in Ongata Rongai. However, he ultimately became the animal’s victim, suffering severe wounds as a result of the attack.
The PAMU team from KWS killed one hyena shortly after the attack and began searching for any other nearby hyena dens. In order to discover whether the hyena carcass is contaminated with rabies or other diseases, a veterinary team is investigating.
Eventually, Anthony Pasha was identified as the individual who was killed. According to his family, he was killed while gathering firewood nearby.
“The hyena came, it attacked him, chased him from the forest, put him down here,” Kaaji Lesian, who is Pasha’s cousin, told the press. “He left his firewood exactly where you are seeing them … down there.”
Senior KWS officers convened an emergency meeting with the university’s Vice-Chancellor Professor and her team as the Tuesday protests intensified.
“KWS Senior Assistant Director for Southern Conservation Area Adan Kalla, MMU Vice-Chancellor Professor Maranga, and OCPD Rongai addressed the agitated students, and KWS outlined mitigation measures taken to contain the hyenas,” the statement said.
The commonality of hyena attacks on Nairobi’s outskirts has increased, leading KWS to publish guidelines on what to do if you come under attack by the animals.
“If faced with a hyena, do not move away until it does and continue facing its direction. Be loud, look aggressive, and appear frightening to deter the hyena,” the KWS advised.
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