By MAYA NTANDA-
A THIRTY-YEAR-OLD woman has been mauled by a crocodile in Kitwe’s Chipata Township.
Anna Chabu of CP17-78 Chipata Township was attacked by a crocodile on Friday evening after rescuing her brother from the jaws of the reptile and she has not been seen since the incident.
Copperbelt Police chief Joyce Kasosa and the victim’s sister Rachel confirmed the incident.
Narrating the ordeal at the funeral house yesterday, Rachel said between 19:00 and 20:00 hours on Friday, her sister informed her that she was going to check on her brother who was fishing on the Kafue River, which is located less than 100 metres from their house.
Rachel said her sister wanted to get some fish from her brother before he sold everything and that while they were on the banks of the river, her brother shouted for help because something had attacked him on the leg.
She said it was at that point that Ann tried to pull her brother but the crocodile turned on her, grabbing her by the waist and throwing her into the river.
“My sister  pulled our brother from the jaws of the crocodile which had attacked him on the ankle, they both fell down but the crocodile turned on my sister, grabbed her by the waist, threw her into the river and that was the last time we saw her,” she said.
The family has further appealed for assistance in finding the victim’s body.
Thomas Kazebausha, who is the victim’s former husband, said the family had not been able to locate the body since the incident and felt they were not getting enough help from the rescue team.
Mr Kazebausha said the rescue team visited the scene and only left their contact numbers for the family to inform them to collect the body once it was found.
He said the family was spending a lot of money hiring people to look for the body and wondered what the rescue team’s job was if they could not give professional assistance in looking for the body under the water.
Another relative, Christopher Kazebausha, said relevant authorities should ensure the protection of residents living on the banks of the Kafue River because a lot of lives had continued to be lost.