Mutirikwi is one of the most crocodile-infested rivers in
the Lowveld and a search and rescue team combing the river for Kundai Chikwava
(18), her daughter Shantell Hungwe and the Gambinya sisters Tryphine (14) and
Tamuka (7) who were swept away in the river has failed to make much headway.
Only some human body parts that include parts of the thighs
and ribs which matched Tryphine have been located.
The Chiredzi Civil Protection Unit (CPU) handed over the
recovered body parts to Tryphine’s relatives and they interred them at her
parents’ home at Village 8, Chiredzi North.
CPU Chiredzi chair and district development coordinator Mr
Lovemore Chisema said besides the recovered body parts, nothing else has been
found.
A search and rescue team combing the river since last
Friday made little headway after covering an area stretching 7km along
Mutirikwi River.
“We have been doing an intensive search for the missing
four persons who were swept away in Mutirikwi River and save for some human
remains that matched Tryphine Gambinya, nothing was recovered by the search
team that comprised the police and villagers,” said Mr Chisema.
“The search operation has been going on since Friday and we
have since informed the national CPU about our progress to date after covering
7km along the river and there is unanimity that we have done our best.”
Mr Chisema said while the search has not yet been
officially terminated, indications were that the missing persons would not be
found.
“We will still continue to undertake some isolated searches
for the missing persons, but we suspect that their remains might have been
eaten by crocodiles because the river is heavily infested with the reptiles.”
Besides crocodiles, Mr Chisema disclosed that the search
effort was also being hampered by the river’s width which was also heavily
braided making the search more complicated and cumbersome.
He paid tribute to local villagers for joining the search
party while reserving special tribute to companies such as Tongaat Huletts
Zimbabwe for also lending a hand.
The four were swept away on Thursday morning after water
levels in Mutirikwi River suddenly soared while they were trying to cross from
Ward 28 in Chiredzi West to Ward 16 in Chiredzi North constituency.
Four others, Sarah Mhloro (33) of Village 8 in Marapira and
her three other children Tracy (15), Belinda (12) and Talent (3) Gambinya were
lucky after they were airlifted by an Air Force of Zimbabwe helicopter from an
island where they were marooned on Friday afternoon.
Police and rescue teams speaking to Mhloro and her
daughters after she was rescued by AFZ in Mutirikwi River.
Mhloro, who is also mother to Tryphine and Tamuka, spent
more than 24 hours stuck on the island while waiting for help.
Trouble started after a weir along Mutirikwi spilled
following heavy rains, spawning floods downstream that swept away four people
leaving Mhloro and her children marooned.
Besides rescuing Mhloro and her children the same AFZ
helicopter also airlifted three Chivi villagers from Shindi area who had been
marooned on a huge rock along Runde River.
Every year several villagers lose their lives in the
Lowveld after being swept away by flooded rivers that would have burst their
banks. Herald
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