In the last one year, Muhuru Bay in Kisumu has seen an increase in human-wildlife conflict which has resulted in the loss of nine lives.
When the hippos struck again in early March 2019, the area Member of County Assembly (MCA), Hevrone Maira, knew that it was time to take action.
The MCA contacted Ian Byron, a Hivisasa writer based in Kisumu, and gave him details of the latest incident and also a background of the situation. Ian then published the story. The article revealed how two men had lost their lives after their fishing expedition went horribly wrong when a hippopotamus attacked them.
Upon interviewing those who witnessed the incident, Ian gathered that despite human-wildlife conflict being an ongoing issue in that area, there had been no form of intervention from the county government or any other relevant authorities.
The MCA charged the Kenya Wildlife Service to contain the hippos or the residents would take action into their own hands.
The published story was shared with county government officials directly and on social media, and a team from the county offices was dispatched to assess the situation and come up with mitigations.
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