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The kudus were seen in the suburb at about 8am on Saturday and spent the whole day roaming around the streets of Southwold, Montrose and Bellevue suburbs.
The huge kudus reportedly panicked when dogs barked at them and started running after them in the streets.
They jumped from one homestead to another over fences and precast walls as they tried to find their way out of the residential area.
One of the kudus was reportedly put down by one of the residents near Montrose Studios. It could not be established yesterday what happened to the meat.
Children from the suburbs, who had never seen a live kudu before, screamed and ran for dear life.
When Chronicle visited the suburb yesterday, residents said they were astonished to see the wild animals in their yards and did not know what to do with them.
Some concluded that the animals belonged to residents who use them for witchcraft purposes.
One of the kudus destroyed a section of a precast wall and an electric fence at 19 Hopton Road in Southwold.
Sithini Ndiweni (17), who stays in Prestbury Road in Southwold said she came out of the house at about 8am and saw one of the kudus looking lost.
She said it immediately jumped to the next house after seeing her.
“I heard people saying the kudus were many but I saw one in our yard. I wondered where the animal had come from but before I could move, the huge animal quickly looked for a way out but the gate was closed. It immediately jumped to the next house over the precast wall and disappeared,” said Sithini.
“Later in the afternoon, I heard that the animals were three and one of them had damaged a precast wall at one of the houses in Hopton Road.”
Mr Elton Green, who stays in Hopton Road, who saw two of the kudus, said they were huge and almost injured children who were playing outside the house.
“I do not really know where the animals came from but they jumped over the precast wall from behind my house, which is about two metres long. The kudus were very big and they frightened the children who were playing outside. The children screamed and we all ran into the house. Unfortunately the gate was closed so the animals jumped over to my neighbour’s house and destroyed a section of the precast wall and broke the electric fence,” said Mr Green.
He, however, expressed concern about the late response from the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, saying the animals spent the whole day roaming around the streets frightening children in the suburb.
“I am disappointed because I phoned the police and they only promised to come. I then phoned the Tshabalala Game Sanctuary and there was no response. Officials from the parks came later in the afternoon.
“These animals were huge and they could have smashed people’s cars as they tried to find a way out of this place. Children were frightened as the kudus were all over the place,” he said.
Another resident from Bellevue, Mrs Innocent Ncube said the kudus were not real kudus but were being used for witchcraft purposes by people.
“Yizinto zabantu lezi. How can kudus appear from nowhere when there are a lot of bushes around?” said Mrs Ncube.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Mandlenkosi Moyo confirmed the incident.
“We received a report of two stray kudus seen by residents in Southwold. One of the kudus was shot dead near ZBC and the other ran away,” said Insp Moyo.
The Parks and Wildlife Management Authority public relations manager, Ms Caroline Washaya-Moyo, could not comment on the issue and asked this reporter to put questions in writing before she could respond.
Online Reporter