A pregnant mother rescued her 4-year-old son from a crocodile attack at Divava Village, Kavango East Region.

The mother and child are both admitted to Andara Hospital.

Pauline Ruhepo Kawena says she and her son accompanied her older sister to the river to wash her clothes.

She says the children were playing in the shallow water while she watched them.

Kawena says where she grew up, there is no river, so she could not understand the strange movements she noticed in the water.

"I saw something that looked like stones moving, so I asked my sister if there were stones in the river because I saw stones moving. I am from the inland, so I could not tell what was really happening. Just as I saw my son in the crocodile's mouth, I screamed. My sister and I ran to my son's rescue. I got on the crocodile's back and forcefully opened the mouth while my sister pulled the boy out of the crocodile's mouth."

Kawena came from Shanyashi Village to visit her sister at Divava Village, as she was due to give birth and her sister's place was closer to the hospital.

Contacted for comment Chief Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism, Romeo Muyunda, cautioned the people using the river on a daily basis to take necessary precautions at all times.

"We want to caution communities living along the rivers in the north and north-eastern regions, as well as the general public, not to take unnecessary risks with their lives. Furthermore, we would like to encourage parents and community leaders, as well as those who live along the rivers, to discourage their children from swimming or bathing in the rivers. We understand that communities that live next to the river draw resources from this river for their livelihoods; however, we want to encourage them whenever they are making use of the river to do so safely by taking the necessary precautions at all times."

The ministry, Muyunda says, is working on preventative measures, which include setting up crocodile enclosures and water provision, to ensure that the benefits outweigh the cost.

NamPol Deputy Commissioner Eino Nambahu said similar incidents of crocodile attacks have been reported in the areas of Shikoro, Ndiyona, Rundjarara, and Divundu.