The once peaceful life of locals on Banggi Island is now compromised by unrelenting saltwater crocodiles, which have been making more of an appearance in the last three to four years.

The crocs have even come ashore, said 46-year-old farmer Julung Dilon, terrorising villagers and stray animals.

“There was a report lodged about a week or two ago of a recent croc attack. There is no way for us to avoid these attacks and we’re all terrified.

“Saltwater crocodiles are now surfacing in large numbers, making it difficult for the fishermen to go to sea. Their appearances are not seasonal either, as they are here all the time,” said Julung, who lamented that they cannot relocate either, due to the fact that the crocs are all around the island.

Villagers have no control over the situation and cannot exterminate the reptiles, as they are afraid of getting hurt, Julung added.

“Moreover, it is our belief that we cannot harm other creatures because they will retaliate.

“All we can do now is implore local authorities to take the matter into their hands, because we do not have the means to handle it ourselves,” he said, adding that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find sustenance under the circumstances.

Julung, who had himself suffered from a crocodile attack, disclosed that patrols were conducted once in a while but that more drastic measures needed to be taken to get the situation under control.

A teacher at SK Sabur, Juani Ali, conceded that the crocodile attacks had moved the school to alert students of such dangers.

He said that students were told to avoid playing near the shore, and were informed of safety measures to take when confronted by the animal.

“Villagers who earn a living as fishermen are obviously at risk, but even those who work at the palm oil plantation are in danger because the crocodiles now come on land.

“Those who have to walk to the plantation are equally endangered, what more if the road they take is flooded.

“Floods here may reach up to the neck level and there is no way of crossing the road if not on foot.

“So that poses a huge threat, because there could be crocodiles lurking,” said the teacher.

Sabah Parks director Dr Jamili Nais, in responding to locals’ woes, said that a study conducted by WWF and the Wildlife Department would focus on the crocodile issue.

He said that locals might be relocated if necessary, but that any decision would be made based on recommendations by experts.

“As of now, there are no plans to set in motion to immediately rectify the issue. We will go down to the site to have a look for ourselves, because these attacks have just happened.

“We will gather the findings of researchers who have conducted studies on the island and consider what they have to recommend,” said Jamili.

The island is part of the Tun Mustapha Marine Park, which recently celebrated its one-year anniversary of being gazetted.

Julung is hopeful that being part of the park will have a positive impact on Banggi Island, especially in terms of security, reinforcement and infrastructure.

Juani also expressed hope that more communication towers would be built to facilitate better connection with the mainland, stressing that it is important in cases of emergencies.

Source:
courtesy of THE BORNEO POST

by THE BORNEO POST

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