Colombia: a hippopotamus of the late drug lord Escobar hit on a highway

A hippopotamus was fatally hit by a truck on Tuesday evening on a highway in Colombia, where this unusual legacy of the late drug lord Pablo Escobar is considered an invasive species, firefighters said.

The animal, weighing more than a ton, was hit on the highway linking Bogota to Medellin, in an area near a property that belonged to Pablo Escobar, fire commander Maria Magdalena Pérez told AFP. of the municipality of Puerto Triunfo, in the department of Antioquia (northwest).

The front of the truck involved in the accident was destroyed, she added, adding that its driver was unharmed.

Reproduction without control

In the late 1980s, the drug lord, who was killed in a 1993 shootout with police, had a small herd of hippos in his hacienda.

Over the years, the latter reproduced without control in a marshy area.

It would now number nearly 150 individuals.

It is not the first time that a traffic accident involving a hippopotamus has occurred in the region.

In December, a collision between a car and one of these mammals from Africa had occurred, without causing any injuries.

The imposing animal had survived and fled.

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The Colombian Ministry of the Environment declared the species invasive in 2022, paving the way for possible hunting.

A sterilization program was attempted but failed.

Experts believe that its uncontrolled reproduction poses a threat to local people and wildlife.

In March, the governor of the department of Antioquia announced a plan to transport nearly half of the herd to sanctuaries in Mexico and India, a move estimated to cost some $3.5 million.