Malawian teenager rescues friend from the jaws of crocodile

BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)—In a rare display of bravery, a Malawian teenager in Kasungu rescued his friend from the jaws of crocodile on Tuesday.

The two boys from Jembe Village, were washing hands in Dwangwa river when a crocodile snatched one of them by its jaws.

Then Benala Katantha, the hero boy, sprung into action holding tight to his friend pulling against the crocodile until the beast gave up.

“The boy kept shouting scaring the reptile until it withdrew,” said Joyce Mbewe, mother to the survivor, Tasiyana Benard.

Tasiyana is being treated for multiple bite wounds and a fractured right leg at Kasungu District Hospital.

Cases of crocodile attacks are increasing and in many cases people lose life while other survivors  go for amputation.

According to Malawi Medical Journal Vol. 21 (1) 2009, the severe soft tissue injury associated with a crocodile bite and the unusual normal oral flora of the crocodile create challenges in treatment.

“Progressive tissue destruction and haemolysis are complications of such infected wounds. An antibiotic regime is recommended that covers gram negative rods, anaerobes and may include doxycycline, as well as the need to have a low threshold for early amputation,” reads the Journal’s report.

Maneno Chimulala

I am a journalist, educator, and activist with passion for telling stories about social justice, sports and political issues. I graduated from Mzuzu University. I started my career at the Maravi Post online publication in 2012 as an intern while in college. Upon graduating from Mzuzu University I was offered a job as Sports Reporter because of my background as a goalkeeper and rose to the position of sub editor. I also had a short stint with Nyasatimes, Malawi Punch and Malawi Digest. Over the past seven years, I have worked intimately with rural organizations and communities in Malawi on human rights, girl child education and grassroots development projects. With an academic background in education, I also volunteer as male champion for girls’ education under Girls Empowerment Networks (GENET) in Malawi’s South West Education Division (SWED).