Two men have died in the aftermath of the illegal snaring of a hippo in the Imfolozi River floodplain, near the mouth of Lake St Lucia in northern KwaZulu-Natal

Two men have drowned after a large crowd of people gathered on the banks of the iMfolozi River, hoping to grab some meat from a dead hippo that was caught in a steel wire snare in the iSimangaliso World Heritage Site near the town of Mtubatuba.

The first man is believed to have drowned while trying to access meat from the carcass. A second man, who went into the water hoping to rescue him or retrieve his body, also drowned, conservation officials reported at the weekend.

The names and ages of the two men have not been released yet. The exact circumstances of their deaths also remain unclear, but it is understood that some residents had also launched several home-made canoes to reach the carcass.

In a joint statement on 25 January, the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife agency and the iSimangaliso Wetlands Park Authority said that a snared hippo was discovered in the river, close to the village of Monzi on 23 September.

The snared hippo was still alive.

"Upon arrival, Ezemvelo officials found large numbers of community members gathered near the river. The Ezemvelo team assessed the situation and determined that rescuing the animal was impossible and extremely dangerous due...