KWS is on the spot after failing to relocate a bloat of hippos that have invaded the Naivasha sewer plant for the last two years adversely affecting operations.
Two weeks after the hippos killed a worker from Naivasha Water, Sewerage and Sanitation Company (NAIWASSCO), KWS has allegedly failed to relocate the animals as promised.
As a result, workers in the facility located near Lake Naivasha are working in fear with KWS on the spot again as cases of human-wildlife conflict continue to rise.
A fortnight ago, a middle-aged man who was working in one of the ponds in the sewer plant was ambushed by a bloat of hippos and crushed to death sparking protest from area residents.
The water company MD Engineer Nahoshon Wahome confirmed the presence of the animals adding that they were working with KWS to relocate them to the lake.
He said that the company had dug a deep trench around the sewer line as one way of keeping the animals from accessing the sewer plant.
“KWS says that it’s a tedious process of relocating the hippos from the sewer plant to the lake and we have done our part by digging a trench around the sewer plant,” he said.
Wahome added that they were working with some development partners on fencing the sewer plant as a long-lasting solution to the current hippo-menace.
A junior KWS officer who is not authorised to speak to the media said that they were seeking traps which would be used to relocate the hippos.
The officer dismissed calls to dart them before moving them back to the lake terming this as dangerous and could lead to the deaths of the animals.
“We are looking at how we can get a container and use some feed to woo the hippos before trapping and moving them to another section of the lake,” the officer said.
Meanwhile, residents of Kayole and Unity farm in Naivasha have issued a seven-day notice to KWS to rein in tens of buffaloes that have raided the area failure to which they will take action.
Through Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, they noted that the animals had left a trail of destruction in farms and were a major threat to school-going children.
He threatened to mobilise area residents and kill the animals which had in the past attacked a farmer and a student on his way home.
“We have buffaloes in Kayole that are also terrorizing area residents and we shall no longer stand back and watch but deal with them ruthlessly,” he said.
