Melody Chiputura (17) had returned to the classroom from
afternoon sports together with other learners to wind off the day, when the
snake, a Black Mamba struck her on the thigh.
Although the snake was immediately killed by some learners,
Melody died on her way to hospital, before a doctor could attend to her.
She was buried on Saturday at Kanyemba village in Rushinga,
leaving a shell-shocked community and scores of traumatised school mates.
Melody’s father, Mr Joseph Chiputura, who is also,
councillor for Ward 13 in Rushinga said he arrived at Rushinga Clinic, where
Melody was rushed to 20 minutes after the incident.
“We received a call 10 minutes after she was bitten. When
we arrived at the clinic it was too late. This is hard to accept and it is painful.
I don’t understand how a snake can get into a classroom and bite my daughter.
“My daughter had great potential and she loved going to
school. She had great hopes pinned on education and we had to make sure we
provided everything she needed. She was doing History, Psychology and Religious
Studies and her dream was to become a psychologist,” he said.
Black Mambas are sleek, fast, nervous, lethally venomous,
and when they feel threatened, they are highly aggressive. Growing up to 3
metres ordinarily, and injecting in one bite, venom enough to kill six adults,
the black mamba is widely considered the world’s deadliest snake. Most of its
victims die within 20 minutes of being bitten.
They get their name not from their skin colour, which tends
to be olive to grey, but rather from the blue-black colour of the inside of
their mouth, which they display when threatened.
Rushinga High School head Mr Christopher Murenga said, “It
was on Thursday and all learners went for sporting activities as per the school
timetable. At around 3.50 pm the learners returned to their classroom as they
prepared to leave for the day.
“She sat on her usual desk, the third desk to the wall, and
two desks in front of her were occupied by her classmates. Immediately she
screamed, saying something had bitten her.
“The learners discovered the snake and everyone panicked
with some jumping out through windows. Some of the boys took Melody outside and
started calling for help.”
Mr Murenga said within five minutes they managed to rush
Melody to Rushinga Clinic while contacting her parents.
“Her parents arrived within 20 minutes in the company of
someone with traditional herbs.
“At the same time we contacted Chimhanda Hospital and the
doctor advised us to bring Melody and the snake which had already been killed
by learners,” he said.
“She died on the way to the hospital. We are in shock we
don’t understand where this snake came from. The classroom block is far away
from suspected snake habitats.
“This is unexplainable. The psychological unit will be at
school today to talk to our learners. We also summoned the counselling and
guidance teachers to talk to Form Six students who witnessed the incident.
“She was obedient and well-mannered. During career guidance
events she assisted with cooking and catering. We have lost an intelligent girl
whom we were sure would pass her Advanced Level,” said the school head.
Deputy provincial education director, Dr Themba Mangwiro
who attended the burial and visited the school said there was no tall grass
around the school and the area leading to the classroom is clear.
“The information we gathered is that the snake was spotted
close to a mountain by a villager. It is reported that the snake crossed the
highway after someone attacked it.
“We suspect that since the learners were on the grounds
doing sports the snake entered the classroom because it was quiet.
“All necessary assistance was rendered and she died on her
way to Chimhanda Hospital. This is a unique case, but we advise school heads to
ensure they cut the grass around their schools.
“This incident has made us realise that we need to improve
disaster risk management which is not given enough attention in schools. We
never thought such incidents can happen in a classroom.
“We need to teach our children that snakes don’t want to be
disturbed. We heard that this snake wanted to strike another child,” he said.
Herald
0 comments:
Post a Comment