Chronicle Editor
Walter Mswazie, Masvingo Correspondent
A FIVE-YEAR-OLD girl from Mwenezi died when she allegedly drank a pesticide she mistook for a soft drink, police have confirmed.
Trisha Zeston of Jaravani Village under Chief Mazetese was playing near her homestead with her two friends aged four and five years when she picked a two- litre container with the pesticide and drank it.
Masvingo police spokesperson Inspector Charity Mazula said the incident occurred on Monday at around 1 PM.
She said the child’s body was taken to Neshuro District Hospital mortuary for post-mortem.
“We have received a report of sudden death by poisoning involving a five-year-old girl. The girl was playing with two other children in the bush when she picked a container with a poisonous substance and drank it,” said Insp Mazula.
She said the three children later returned home but Trisha started complaining of stomach pains.
The girl’s mother, Ms Abigail Mhara (25), asked what her daughter had consumed.
Insp Mazula said she was told by her daughter’s friends that she had consumed a substance she thought was a soft drink.
The girl, police said, started vomiting and died at the homestead before she could be rushed to hospital.
A report was made to the police who attended the scene and their investigations revealed that the poisonous substance was a pesticide.
Ins Mazula advised parents to properly dispose pesticide containers or destroy them after use.
@walterbmswazie2
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