A hippopotamus died Tuesday night after being run over on a highway in Colombia, a country where this species, imported in 1984 by drug trafficker Pablo Escobar, is considered an invader, a source from the fire department reported.
The animal, weighing more than a ton, was run over on the highway that connects Bogotá with Medellín, in a property close to a property belonging to Pablo Escobar, María Magdalena Pérez, commander of the fire department of the municipality of Puerto Triunfo, in the department of Antioquia (northwest).
The front end of the van involved in the accident was destroyed, the same source added, adding that the driver was unharmed.
At the height of his criminal empire, Escobar built a zoo on his 3,000-hectare Hacienda Nápoles, located in Puerto Triunfo, in the department of Antioquia.
The famous drug trafficker imported exotic animals from all over the world to that place, causing an impact due to the extravagance of the property, where he installed a small plane at the entrance gate that symbolized the means of transporting his cocaine shipments to the United States.
After his death in 1993, and with the end of his drug cartel, the animals at Escobar’s zoo were left uncontrolled, in an environment that was not theirs, and they found a new home in the plains of Magdalena Medio, to which they quickly moved. they got used to it due to the favorable conditions of the land, irrigated by the waters of the Magdalena river, the main one in Colombia.
However, over time, hippos have become a danger to the region’s fauna, flora and peasants, one of whom suffered serious injuries when he was attacked in 2020 while fumigating a pasture.
The number of individuals of this species is currently estimated at 150.
This is not the first time a car accident involving a hippo has occurred in the region.
In December, a collision between a car and one of these giant African mammals caused no injuries and the animal survived and fled.
The Colombian Ministry of the Environment declared the species invasive in 2022, paving the way for possible hunting.
Even a sterilization program was developed, but it failed.
Experts believe that their uncontrolled reproduction poses a threat to the local population and wildlife.
In March, the governor of the department of Antioquia announced a plan to send 72 hippos to Mexico, India and Ecuador, at an estimated cost of 3.5 million dollars (about 3.2 million euros).
However, also in March, Ecuador “categorically” refused to be available to receive hippos.
Source: TSF
