A leopard attack early on Saturday morning at Mangai village, situated deep inside Boni Forest in Lamu County has left a 26-year-old woman with severe injuries on the head, face, ribs and limbs.
It started when her father, 50-year-old Yusuf Mohamed, stepped out of his house, approached the chicken coop in a corner of his homestead and opened its door.
No sooner had he turned his back to walk away than a leopard unexpectedly leapt from a nearby bush and attacked him from behind.
“I wasn’t aware that a leopard was hiding in a bush near the chicken house. It suddenly jumped through the air and clawed at my back. The sharp claws ripped my shirt and scratched my skin. I fought while shouting and stumbled away,” said Mr Mohamed.
The leopard dashed toward the compound where Mr Mohamed’s 26-year-old daughter Wisha Yusuf had come out of the house in response to her father’s screams.
The animal violently pounced on her, leaving her with severe injuries on the head, face, ribs and limbs.
Speaking to the Daily Nation on Saturday, the victim's sister, Rukia Yusuf, said a neighbour came to her sister’s rescue.
“On seeing what was happening, we screamed. Our neighbour, while armed with a piece of firewood, ran to our home. He hit it severally on the head and neck and drove it away, saving my sister's life. By then, my sister had already suffered severe injuries on her face, head, ribs and limbs. She was lying on the ground with blood oozing from her wounds,” said Ms Yusuf.
While confirming the incident on Sunday, Lamu County Director of Disaster Risk Management and Peace Building, Mr Shee Kupi, said the County Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) swiftly responded and rushed the victims to King Fahd County Referral Hospital for treatment and medical assessment.
“The incident occurred at 8am when an elderly resident unknowingly disturbed a leopard that had been resting behind his homestead. The animal first attacked the elderly man, causing minor bite injuries, before turning on his daughter, who had rushed outside after hearing his screams. The young woman sustained deep facial lacerations and serious soft tissue injuries to her right hand,” said Mr Kupi.
Mr Kupi further explained that the severely injured woman immediately received life-saving first aid from a Community Health Volunteer (CHV) at her homestead at Mangai Village before being rushed to Kiangwe Dispensary for medical assessment.
“The Lamu EOC, upon receiving the distress call, immediately activated the emergency response system and dispatched an ambulance, ensuring the patient received timely medical care despite the incident occurring in the remote Boni Forest region,” said Mr Kupi.
“I commend our Community Health Volunteer, Kiangwe health team, ambulance crew and the Lamu County EOC for their professionalism and rapid response that undoubtedly saved a life,” said Mr Kupi.
Contacted, Lamu County Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Assistant Director Ibrahim Ahmed said his team of rangers at Mangai is closely following the incident.
Mr Ahmed said KWS will continue to work closely with the community leaders and local residents to strengthen human-wildlife conflict mitigation measures. He acknowledged a reduction in the number of cases of human-wildlife conflicts reported in recent times.
“The Mangai leopard attack incident is just an isolated case. Because there has been rains from time to time in this place, cases of wildlife moving from the forest to search for water in homesteads have greatly reduced. Such cases are rampant during drought season,” said Mr Ahmed.
