adminABOUT 21 houses and grazing land were on Monday destroyed by veld fire at Arda Transau in Odzi. The fire, according to villagers, started from a distant bush and destroyed various thatched houses which were yet to be occupied.
Villagers from Arda Transau interviewed on Wednesday afternoon said they failed to extinguish the fire, which started on Monday morning.
“There was nothing we could do after realising that some of the infrastructure was burning.
“It is a distance from where we reside and all we did was to extinguish the fire and prevent it from encroaching onto nearby houses. The fire was really fierce, but we thank God that no one was injured during the blaze,” said one villager who refused to identify herself.
Another villager said someone could have failed to stop the fire before it encroached onto Arda Transau.
“Some mischievous people usually burn bushes around our area and control it, but this time they could have failed to extinguish it before it spread. The houses have not been occupied for several months and that contributed to their burning because no one was around to quickly fight the fire,” he said.
Long grass surrounds the new houses which are yet to be occupied in the area and various villagers called for responsible authorities to clear the area to avoid similar incidences. Villagers who reside at Arda Transau were relocated from Chiadzwa diamond fields in Marange in 2009 to pave way for diamond mining activities.
According to a statutory body responsible for ensuring the sustainable management of natural resources and protection of the environment, Environmental Management Agency, starting fires is a punishable offence that can attract a fine of up to $5 000.
“An environmental fine can reach up to Level 14 which is $5 000 or an equivalent jail sentence. We continue to discourage people from causing fires particularly from July 31 and October 31. There are no excuses for starting fires whether for residential or commercial purposes. It is quite unfortunate that people sometimes take our education for granted,” said EMA Manicaland provincial manager Mr Kingston Chitotombe.
He added that they were carrying out awareness campaigns, meeting the general public, print and electronic media, as well as traditional leaders advising them about the dangers of causing veld fires.
“We have also partnered timber companies preaching the same message. We continue to urge people to be aware of pre-suppression measures S)like fire guards. To a larger extent it is working though some people tend to take us for granted,” he said.
Online Reporter