Residents of Mission Village in Butterworth say they
are living in fear after claims that a giant snake, believed to be a python,
has been spotted in the area last month.
The community says the snake has been spotted in
different areas over five times and they were now fearing for their children
and livestock which may be devoured if the snake is not caught or killed soon.
Resident and community leader in the area Mfundo
Bacela says the snake was recently sighted by his shepherd while taking
livestock to drink water at a nearest valley in the community.
“I was not home on the day, but I am told that the
shepherd came back running and hysterical saying he saw a giant snake in the
valley and ran for his life,” said Bacela.
He says they have approached the Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in East London for assistance in
catching the giant snake.
“The SPCA referred us to two snake experts who came to
our village last week for a search party, but it could not be sighted on the
day. They then advised us that if sighted again we must not run away from it
and immediately call them,” said Bacela.
Bacela added that the community has further sought the
services of a private snake relocation company based in East London to come to
their village in the hope of apprehending and relocating the giant snake.
The search party with the hired company is expected to
be conducted before the end of the week.
Mnquma Local Municipality says it has not been made
aware of the existence of the giant snake in the area.
“At this stage, the municipality has nit received any
formal complaint or been approached directly with concrete evidence of the
incident. Ordinarily the municipality would rope in relevant stakeholders like
the police and state veterinarians to handle such a situation.”
“However, we encourage anyone with evidence of this
sighting to come forward and report to the municipality or the police for
assistance,” said municipal spokesperson Loyiso Mpalantshane.
