A month after an unknown animal attacked 18 villagers sleeping outdoors in Limbai village of Barwani district, six have died. Authorities still dont know what bit them — or why. The latest victim, 50-year-old Chain Singh, died on Sunday at MY Hospital, Indore. Hours earlier, 40-year-old Sunil Nigwal died after being sent home from the same hospital. Most victims came from tribal villages like Limbai and Solyapura. They were attacked on the night of 5 May while sleeping outside to escape the heat. All had clear bite wounds — some on their faces. They all got anti-rabies vaccines quickly, but none showed normal signs of rabies. Doctors say the symptoms are strange. The bite marks differ in size and pattern. Officials remain confused. It could be a fox or jackal, but we dont know for sure, said Barwani Sub-Divisional Magistrate Bhupendra Rawat. Doctors at MY Hospital said the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has been informed because of how unusual this is. Two more villagers — 65-year-old Muralidhar and 75-year-old Dagdu from Sendhwa — were admitted this week with similar wounds. They are stable and under watch. Villagers say the creature attacked silently and vanished into the dark. No one saw it clearly. Efforts to identify it by the bite marks havent helped. On Monday, angry residents blocked a state highway, demanding the animal be caught. Barwani Collector Guncha Sanobar visited Limbai that evening, met families, gathered information and promised government support. An inter-departmental probe is ongoing.

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