Villagers Living In Fear Over Frequent Crocodile Sightings

BATU PAHAT, May 10 (Bernama) -- Villagers of Kampung Parit Gantong here are living in fear of crocodiles after three of the reptiles were caught in the last week.

All villagers and farmers expressed their fear and concern for their safety and that of their livestock to reporters when met today, with goat breeder M Nazri Sadikin, 50, sharing that one of his goats ended up being eaten as he discovered the animal’s remains about 20 metres from the banks of Sungai Batu Pahat.

“Crocodile sightings in Sungai Batu Pahat grew significantly around 2010, but villagers were not too concerned then, but in the past three years, sightings have become very frequent, causing some smallholders to avoid going out to harvest their oil palm.

“More worrisome is that crocodiles are now entering homes, as happened yesterday when a baby crocodile was found in the toilet by a villager,” he said, adding that the offending reptile was caught by a team of firefighters who responded to the emergency.

Fellow villager Mohd Fitri Azizi Kasbola, 44, said he came across another crocodile, believed to be a female weighing about 300 kilogrammes (kg), with a nest of 53 eggs and called the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan), which sent a team to remove them.

The first crocodile that entered the village this week was spotted on May 7, and weighed over 400 kg and was caught by firefighters with the assistance of villagers.

-- BERNAMA