Buffalo gores, kills hunter in dramatic turn of events

By Anthony Mayunga ,The Citizen Correspondent

Posted  Friday, January 31  2014 at  00:00

In Summary

“We all believed the beast was dead and we were happy with the catch, before it surprised us with the attack on our colleague,” explained one of the eyewitnesses who, however, preferred anonymity.

Serengeti. Miseke Village resident, suspected to be a poacher, died after a trapped buffalo at Ikorongo Reserve broke loose and gored him.

It is the second similar incident in 18 months as in 2012 another resident was rammed to death by a buffalo bull he had trapped near Nyaburekari River.

The village’s executive officer, Mr Yohane Sentehu, named the victim as Emanuel Mustafa Msikanguru, 30, who was critically wounded after the attack and died on the way to Nyerere DDH Hospital.

However, there were conflicting reports on his death as some of his close relatives claimed he was attacked while cutting trees in the reserve, while others claimed he met his sudden demise while taking his cattle back home.

But reliable sources told The Citizen that the deceased and three others were tracking a buffalo which they later found caught in one of their traps.

The bull lay still when they cautiously approached the area where it was trapped. Catching them unawares, the bull sprang at the deceased and tossed him in the air, inflicting serious wounds on his body.

“We all believed the beast was dead and we were happy with the catch, before it surprised us with the attack on our colleague,” explained one of the eyewitnesses who, however, preferred anonymity.

Eyewitnesses claimed the buffalo disappeared shortly after the attack.

The ward’s councilor, Mr Marko Shaweshi, told The Citizen that the deceased could have survived had he received treatment timely.

“It took him long to get assistance, a situation that might have led to his death as the bull had pierced his thigh causing him to bleed profusely,” explained the councilor.