A Colombian researcher has been trampled to death by an elephant in Kibale National Park, in western Uganda.
The deceased identified as Sebastian Ramirez Amaya, a 30-year-old US
based researcher from Arizona State University attached to Ngogo
Chimpanzee Research Centre in Kibale National Park in Kamwenge
District.
The Rwenzori West Regional Police Spokesperson, Mr Vincent Twesige,
said the incident happened on Sunday at around 9am when the deceased and
his colleagues went deep inside the National Park for research under
the guidance of one Ngene, a Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) warden.
“While in the forest, the students took different directions, and
while coming out, everyone else returned to the camp except Amaya. The
team decided to head back to the forest to look for him, but
unfortunately, they found when an elephant had already killed him,” he
said.
Mr Twesige said the UWA warden (Ngene) reported the matter to Bigodi Police Station that evening.
Police led by Kamwenge District CID Officer, Mr Paddy Tumwebaze,
visited the scene and retrieved the body, and took it to Fort Portal
Regional Referral Hospital for postmortem as investigations into the
matter continue.
The UWA spokesperson, Mr Bashir Hanji, said that it’s a regrettable
and unfortunate incident the Authority had not witnessed in the last 50
years in Kibale National Park.
