Namibia's drought claims lives of five trapped hippos

Five hippopotamuses have died while trapped in a mud pool in northeastern Namibia, where a severe drought has caused a major river to dry up, the environment ministry said Friday.

The dead were among 130 hippos stranded for days in a pool along the Chobe River on the border with Botswana after the water in the pool evaporated, ministry spokesman Romeo Muyunda said.

"Unfortunately five hippos have died from one of the ponds in the Zambezi Region," he said. "We are suspecting that they might have died from starvation but we are not ruling out diseases such as anthrax."

Hippos and other species were also stranded in two more pools in the area, Muyunda said, adding that a borehole was being drilled to help the trapped animals.

The desert country is among several southern African nations weathering what the United Nations estimates to be the region's worst drought in more than 100 years.

"There is no grass and the Chobe River is completely dry," said Muyunda.

The drought led the Namibian government to declare a state of emergency in May.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a global authority on food security, said in September that 1.15 million people in Namibia -- around 38 percent of its population -- face high levels of acute food insecurity and require urgent aid.

In August the government announced plans to cull 723 wild animals, including elephants and hippos, to relieve pressure on food and water sources and provide meat for people going hungry.