Report by Chief officer
Min.of Tourism Sport &Culture hon Gk Zakayo
This is in reference to the report dated 22nd September 2018 on the above subject matter.
The search of the stray lion is still ongoing and the status is as follows: –
Since the team embarked on a serious hunt on 22nd September 2018 no any other attack has been reported,
The cases of domestic animals reported remain; 8 cows, 2 donkeys, 4 goats and 1 dog,
The operation is ongoing through a cordial relationship of officers from: –
the Ministry of Tourism, Sports and Culture led by the Chief Officer Ministry of Tourism, Sports and Culture,
KWS rangers led by Mr. Bakari, Senior Warden in charge of Meru National Park, Kora National Park and Mwingi Game Reserve,
Community leaders of the area.
The effort to hunt the lion has been as follows: –
On 24th September 2018 an additional lion capture trap was brought from Meru National Park alongside extra four other KWS staff,
The team has been sensitizing the community on compensation procedures and safety precautions in case of any attack,
Foot patrols and combing of the thicket and surrounding water points aiming at tracking the lion footprints to ascertain its location is ongoing,
The rangers are camping along the western side of Mumoni hills near homesteads to respond to any alarm calls.
A call back system arrived from Kambi ya Simba in Kora National Park on 22nd September 2018 and several call backs have been done in different localities, and in two points the lion foot prints was noted in the morning,
The Mobile Vet unit was called off from Mumoni on 24th September 2018 to attend an urgent call at Isiolo where another lion had killed one person and injured two.
On 24th September 2018, the lion foot prints were noted at Thua area on western parts of Mumoni Hills towards Tana River, and there is possibility with no Kill reported since 22nd September 2018 that the lion was heading to Mwea Game Reserve where it is believed to have come from.
IN CONCLUSION
The lion foot prints spotted on 24th September 2018 no any other indication of the presence of the lion in the area has been reported.
However, the area is diverse measuring a radius of not less than 20 km of thicket and sloppy terrain, which makes the hunting of the stray lion a challenge.
Despite the assumption that the stray lion might have returned to Mwea, the team is still comping the forest and remaining alert under watch of any suspicious occurrences.
End.