A 13-year-old girl was on Monday killed by a crocodile in Lake Baringo, Kenya’s Rift Valley.
On the fateful day, Cherop Samut left school for home at around 1 pm, local time. Shortly after arriving home, she went to the lake to bathe and wash her clothes while in the company of the other two girls.
In the course of undertaking their tasks in the flooded lake, the Grade 3 pupil at Katuwit Primary School was attacked by a crocodile, and her colleagues tried to pull her legs from the jaws of the animal, but their effort was futile. They were overpowered by it.
On realizing the defeat, the girls rushed home to report the incident, and the locals responded immediately by launching a rescue mission, but they did not manage to save her.
According to the residents, the lack of a community boat delayed the rescue mission and body search as they were forced to borrow and transport a boat engine 15kms away from the scene.
Confirming the incident, Katuwit Primary School headteacher Samuel Korir described the deceased as disciplined, jovial, clean, and hardworking.
“The deceased was in a jovial mood that day. She even told her class teacher she would be the first to arrive in school the next day,” Korir reiterated.
Kenya Wildlife Service and World Vision have combined efforts with the locals to search for the 13-year-old body.
The incident comes four years after a crocodile attacked a 45-year-old man in the same place.
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