Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
THE pain of mourning is an inherent part of the being human, but for this Chipinge woman, the agony was unbearable.
She was swept away by a raging torrent of floodwater for over five metres, helplessly watching as her four-year-old child and eight-year-old niece met their fate.
This was the horrific ordeal endured by Ms Perseverance Sithole (26), following a dam breach at Bandama Farm in Chipinge District last Sunday.
The disaster unleashed a massive quantity of water downstream, claiming the lives of five children — Agnes Muchadeyi (4), Blessing Maone (10), Tapiwa Mtisi (13), Forgiveness Maphosa (10), and Zembilo Dube (4).
Eight-year-old Grace Mlambo and four-year-old Juliet Mhlanga are still missing, and their fate remains unknown.
As Ms Sithole recounted the harrowing events that led to the loss of the two minors at Chipinge District Hospital mortuary on Tuesday, where they were collecting the bodies for burial at their Bikita rural home, her overwhelming grief was palpable.
Her pain was almost tangible.
“I had the two kids with me, one four-years-old and the other eight. We had finished our laundry and bathing, and were packing our belongings to head home. I was instructing the kids to help with the packing when I saw a nearby tree falling due to the strong wave of water rushing towards us.
“I held the younger one in my arms, and tried to reach for the eight-year-old, but the strong current swept the little one away from me. The eight-year-old was also swept away. We were all submerged in the powerful wave. I stared death in the face. I was swept away for about five metres underwater before managing to push away the tree that was holding me back. When I saw the ground, I walked out of the stream. I was naked, and some men who were nearby helped by wrapping a cloth around my body. This is just unbearable. I am devastated,” she said.
Ms Sithole was the face of the torturous suffering and grief that engulfed the Chivhunze Village.
70-year-old farm guard, Mr Samson Masirande, who witnessed the tragedy from a distance, recounted: “On Sunday, around 8am, I noticed water flowing along Dandoni River, but I was puzzled by its murky colour. I assumed some youngsters were playing upstream, but the water was minimal.
“I investigated upstream to find the source of the dirty water, but found nothing. By 12pm, the water had risen to knee level, and later to waist level. I went upstream again, and heard a loud roaring sound, similar to a helicopter.
“That is when I tried to chase away some children who were playing along the stream, but they answered me back that it was not my concern. The water then surged forward with trees and a powerful wave. By that time, the dam had cracked, and we could only watch helplessly as the water swept everything away.”
The disaster resulted in the destruction of four pump houses and a grinding mill.
A villager, Mr Liberty Fukuzeya, from Ward 10, was among the hardest hit. He lost nearly everything, including his two-roomed cottage, huts, passports, national identity documents, driver’s licence, household property, and food items, that were all swept away at his homestead.
Chipinge District Development Coordinator, Mr William Mashava said one of the bridges that was swept away after the Bandama Farm Dam breach needs urgent attention.
“In Ward Seven, we lost four pumps and four pumps houses at different farms. There are also a number of pigs and cattle that were swept away.
“We also have a bridge that links Chipinge town and nearby farming communities where some of our industries like Dairibord get their milk, that was swept away.
‘‘It needs urgent attention. We also have children who are failing to attend school, and some farm workers who are unable to report for duty because of the damage,” he said.
Mr Mashava said the search for the missing children is still ongoing.
Several stakeholders including the Joint Operations Committee (JOC), Civil Protection Unit (CPU) as well as development partners like Red Cross, joined deputy ministers (Local Government and Public Works) Engineer Benjamin Kabikira and (Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development), Honourable Vangelis Peter Haritatos during the tour of the area on Tuesday.
Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Advocate Misheck Mugadza toured the area on Monday.
