Enlarge image
Cows (archive photo): “The worst smell I have ever experienced in my life”
Photo:
MARKO DJURICA/ REUTERS
The South African port city of Cape Town is currently suffering from a massive odor problem, which regional media reports have linked to the arrival of a gigantic cattle truck. According to research by the South African animal protection organization NSPCA, the 19,000 cattle on the live export ship "Al Kuwait" on the way from Brazil to the Middle East are in a pitiful condition. In a statement, the organization spoke of a “Kuwaiti death ship.”
Images in South African media show animals covered in dirt lying or standing deep in excrement. The British BBC quotes a local resident as saying that it was "the worst smell I have ever experienced in my life." People in the port area described the smell as so bad that it was almost impossible to breathe. The smell has not yet spread to the more distant parts of the city. According to the information, the ship reached the port on Sunday evening and was scheduled to leave again on Monday evening.
Local media also report that many residents initially approached the authorities with concerns that the odor was related to a problem with the city's own wastewater supply. Rumors and misinformation arose. Pumps were then inspected and declared to be functional. Finally, the environmental authority was able to confirm the ship as the source of the odor.
The stench is an indication "of the terrible conditions in which the animals are suffering, having already spent two and a half weeks on board, amid an accumulation of feces and ammonia," the NSPCA said. The smell on board is unimaginable, and the animals on board are exposed to it every day.
Sol