PAMBALASA Village Headman in Senga Hill Hosebio Mwimbe has called on the Department of National Parks and Wildlife to control the cobra population in the area.

This follows a number of snake attacks among his subjects with the latest one being a three year old toddler in the area .

Mr Mwimbe notes that the snake population has increased in the area and are thereby a danger to the livelihoods whose economy is dependent on farming.

The traditional leader  in an interview with ZANIS said school going children pass through the same area where the boy met his fate.

“People are scared to go work in their fields for fear of being beaten by snakes so we are appealing to authorities to come to our aid before more lives are lost,” Headman Pambalasa noted.

Twavula Sichula, a 12 year old boy  of Mtonga Village in Senga Hill District  died after an unexpected  cobra attack.

Sichula,  a grade  three pupil at Pambalasa Primary School,  met his fate on Tuesday afternoon in Mtonga village.

Father of the deceased, Fenwick Sichula who confirmed the matter to ZANIS in an interview said that on Tuesday morning  his now deceased son had accompanied his parents to the field located on the mountain in Mtonga village.

After they finished the weeding, he went home while his wife remained with the now deceased to collect firewood only for the toddler to be unexpectedly attacked by the vicious reptile.

This was while trying to cut a tree for firewood using an axe. 

His wife, in trying to save the life of his son, quickly put the now deceased on her back and rushed home but died on the way home.

The body of the deceased is expected to be put to rest this afternoon.