Escaped lions to be shot

2007-10-04 12:10

Johannesburg - Limpopo's Environmental Affairs department has given the go-ahead for rangers to kill roaming lions that have escaped from the Kruger National Park, SABC reported on Wednesday.

A department spokesperson said rangers had been sent to hunt and kill the lions.

Five more cattle were killed by lions at Gawula village outside Giyani in Limpopo on Wednesday.

This brings to 47 the number of cattle killed since the beginning of last month, when four lions escaped from Kruger National Park.

One lion was hit by train and another was killed by authorities after eating a cow. The remaining two lions were initially thought to have returned to the park of their own accord.

However, Kruger National Park spokesperson William Mabasa said a broken fence on the western part of the park had not yet been repaired.

"We have rangers patrolling the area at the moment. The issue of the fence is not a simple one because not only animals damage it, but also human beings take parts of the fence for their own use," said Mabasa.

He said to solve the situation people needed to respect the fence as it protected them from the animals.

"In cases like these the damage has been done, the animals have escaped, there is little we can do," said Mabasa.

Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency spokesperson Jimmy Masombuka urged people not to approach or hunt the lions, but to report to authorities if they see them.

- SAPA