Five year-old girl attacked by hyena

A five-year-old Zimbabwean girl narrowly escaped death, when a hyena attacked her as she slept at a shrine where her mother was attending a church service in Mukanganwi village outside Beit Bridge.

The victim, Vimbai Gomba, lost part of her nose and her eyes were injured in the attack. Her mother, Mrs Anna Gomba, was reportedly praying a short distance away, while the child slept.

Other worshippers ran to her rescue when they heard the child screaming for help and she was taken to a local hospital where she was treated.

A local veterinary officer, Mr Felix Ndodyei, who attended to the victim soon after the attack, said the girl’s condition had continued to deteriorate, though she was on medication. "We immediately ordered her parents to take her to hospital since we suspected that she might also have contracted rabies. What is worrying is that Vimbai’s face continues to swell, though doctors have been attending to her and operated on her," he said.

They later ruled out rabies and were trying to determine the cause of the swelling.

Local villagers have been on high alert for marauding hyenas that are mainly targeting livestock.

The incident comes hot on the heels of a similar case in which another 80-year-old man from Bvurungwa village outside Beit Bridge was attacked and killed by a hyena while on his way to a church service. The victim, Misheck Madechiwe, was walking with his wife, Maria Mahwandu (63), when a hyena charged him. The victim’s wife used her umbrella to chase off the animal, but not before it had severed her husband’s left arm and bitten off part of his face.

News - Date: 26 November 2010

Mashudu Netsianda

Mashudu Netsianda is our correspondent in Beit Bridge, Zimbabwe. He joined us in 2006, writing both local and international stories. He had worked for several Zimbabwean publications, as well as the Times of Swaziland. Mashudu received his training at the School of Mass Communication in Harare.

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