THREE people died after being swept away by flooded rivers following heavy rains and strong winds that battered parts of Chipinge district on Friday evening, the Civil Protection Unit (CPU) has confirmed.
Chipinge District CPU chairperson, Mr William Mashava, said
authorities were monitoring the situation.
“The first victim was found upstream of Bangazaan (Budzi)
Dam,” he said. “His body was discovered by children who were fishing. We are
looking for his relatives after locals failed to identify him.
“The second victim was swept away along Chiriga River when
he was returning from drinking beer with friends at night.
“Another victim was an elderly woman coming from a funeral
in Musirizwi communal lands and attempted to cross a flooded river.”
The cyclone has reportedly caused extensive damage in some
areas, according to CPU. By yesterday afternoon, 15 houses had been damaged in
Gumiro Village, Mapungwana area in Ward 14.
A science laboratory block was damaged at Mt Selinda High
School, while toilets at Green Valley Primary School were destroyed.
There was also a mudslide between Chipinge and Tanganda,
with large boulders blocking some roads.
There are fears dams such as Watershed, Bangazzan and
Mutakura, which were already full before the heavy rains, could spill and cause
flooding.
“Some houses collapsed in Ward 14 and our teams are making
frantic efforts to reach the area to assess the situation on the ground. We are
facing challenges because most of these areas are inaccessible,” he said.
Several evacuation centres have been set up in Chipinge to
accommodate those affected by the cyclone. Sunday Mail
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