64 elephants killed with cyanide in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwean wildlife authorities will dispatch a team of experts to the country’s largest game park Saturday to investigate the poisoning to death of 64 elephants, an official said.

“Experts drawn from seven ministries will travel to Hwange National Park tomorrow (Saturday) to make findings on the disaster at the park where 64 elephants have died from cyanide poisoning,” the director general of the parks and wildlife authority, Edson Chidziya, said.

“There are fears that there could be more deaths but we need chemists to determine whether the danger is still there.”

The elephants reportedly died in separate incidents after drinking poisoned water. The state-owned Herald newspaper gave the number of elephants killed as 69.

Nine people were arrested on suspicion of poisoning watering halls in the game park to kill the elephants for their tusks and were due to appear in court in Tsholotsho.

Chidziya dismissed reports linking the poachers to a South African businessman.

“We just heard about those reports but from our side we don’t know about that link yet,” he said.

Two years ago nine elephants, five lions and two buffalo died from cyanide poisoning in Hwange national park.

Environment minister Saviour Kasukuwere has called for stiff penalties for poachers.

Cyanide is a mitochondrial toxin that is among the most rapidly lethal poisons known to man. Used in both ancient and modern times as a method of execution, cyanide causes death within minutes to hours of exposure.

Wikipedia says:”Cyanide poisoning is a form of histotoxic hypoxia because the cells of an organism are unable to use oxygen, primarily through the inhibition of cytochrome c oxidase. If cyanide is inhaled it causes a coma with seizures, apnea, and cardiac arrest, with death following in a matter of minutes.

At lower doses, loss of consciousness may be preceded by general weakness, giddiness, headaches, vertigo, confusion, and perceived difficulty in breathing.

At the first stages of unconsciousness, breathing is often sufficient or even rapid, although the state of the victim progresses towards a deep coma, sometimes accompanied by pulmonary edema, and finally cardiac arrest”.