'Elephant Man' Delivers Water To Animals Until Rain Comes

Kenya has announced that the country is facing drought due to low rainfall since October. As animals suffer the effects of the natural disaster, a Kenyan man delivers water to wildlife species in the dry regions of Tsavo.

People reported that Patrick Kilonzo Mwalau, also known as "the Elephant Guardian," has raised over $90,000 through his GoFundMe page to deliver water to animals in the wild. He started his fundraising project five months ago as an urgent call to save animals from "a prolonged drought."

According to Mwalau, he and his team, the Tsavo volunteers, have become worried about losing wild animals. Since these species are now considered endangered due to poaching, his group took the responsibility of providing the water supply until drought is over.

At least four times a week, the team travels 27 miles via rented water trucks to deliver 12,000 liters of water (for $250 each tank) and bring these to animals at two different areas.

Mwalau said that elephants are fighting for few available water holes, preventing the smaller ones from drinking. These young ones end up extremely thirsty, walking far distances to look for something to drink.

Mwalau posts his updates on his Facebook page, including one saying the animals are often waiting for his delivery. "I found no water at all and animals were right resting at the waterhole waiting for my truck and quench their thirst," he wrote on Feb. 18.

According to The Week, there will be no heavy rains in the area until November. Thankfully, people are placing huge amounts of donations on the website. Furthermore, the media has given a lot of attention to the project, giving it enough publicity for further promotion.

"This month we should do a lot for animals and have permanent solutions because we are getting more donations," Mwalau wrote. "Want to thank my team and every donor in making this happen. I will continue delivering water until it rains."