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Boy 13 saves brother from hyena attack

NAIVASHA, May 30 – A 13-year-old boy heroically saved his 9-year-old sibling from an attack by three hyenas at the Kedong ranch in Naivasha on Friday.

In the bizarre incident, Nkutai Rimuen (13) yanked one hyena that had attacked his brother, James Lemaiyan, by the ears and threw it out of a make-shift house at the ranch.

Nkutai said he had no idea the animal was a hyena.

"It was pitch dark at the time and I could not make out which animal it was," he said.

The two brothers and a friend were sleeping in the structure after grazing their herds on Thursday, when they were attacked by the hyenas at about 2am Friday.

According to Nkutai, he heard his younger brother scream and rushed to his aid.

The teenager narrated to journalists how the animal then lunged at him, and bit him on his right hand.

Nkutai said that after chasing the hyena away, he ran to the enclosure that had their flocks, and found that two sheep, one dog and one calf had been eaten by the rogue animals.

Lemaiyan, who had been bitten on the thighs and was screaming in agony, was rushed by his brother to a nearby Manyatta, where he was assisted by a good samaritan.

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The brothers were admitted to Mt Longonot Hospital in Naivasha, while their friend who was also attacked by the animals and ran off into the vast ranch, has not yet been found.

Curious on-lookers jammed the hospital to catch a glimpse of the boy who saved his brother.

Doctors have described their condition as stable but said they would have to stay in hospital a little longer for further check ups.

The Officer in Charge in Mt Longonot Hospital Dr Mikoyo Utumba, said ‘the victims had been given anti-rabies shots and pain killers’.

The warden in charge of the Hells Gate National Park Lydia Kisoyan termed the incident as regrettable, but said that they had sent a patrol team to the ranch and were hoping to trap the animal the attacked the brothers.

"The area is vast at over 80,000 acres but we have set a trap and we hope to get the animal in order to separate it from the rest as there is a possibility of it coming back," she said.

Kisoyan said the victims would be given a form to fill for considerations on compensation, which would be discussed by a board chaired by the District Commissioner.

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