Online Reporter
Peter Matika [email protected]
FOUR simultaneous burials at Bulawayo’s Umvutsha Cemetery have exposed the Bulawayo City Council’s deepening equipment crisis after the mourners struggled to backfill graves due to a shortage of equipment.
The incident, contained in the latest council minutes, has triggered calls for the urgent procurement of additional cemetery equipment and the repair of existing machinery.
Bulawayo mayor Cllr David Coltart said the local authority was battling to source critical spare parts required to keep cemetery machinery operational, exposing broader maintenance challenges affecting the city’s ageing municipal fleet.
The equipment failure comes at a time when Umvutsha Cemetery is handling an increasing number of burials, including bodies brought from outside Bulawayo.
Council records show that people are being buried at the cemetery from areas such as Harare, Chitungwiza, Mbembesi, Nkayi and Matobo, while some bodies are repatriated from South Africa for burial.
While Umvutsha still has significant burial capacity, the incident has raised concerns about the council’s ability to efficiently provide burial services during periods of high demand.
Council estimates that the cemetery has about 6 500 graves still available. At the current average utilisation rate of about 105 graves per month, the available space is expected to last until around 2030.
The Anglican Church has also approached council seeking the reservation of 200 graves for its congregants after exhausting its previously allocated burial space at West Park Cemetery.
Council has recommended that the request be granted.
However, the immediate challenge remains the availability of machinery needed to prepare graves and complete burials with dignity and efficiency.
The cemetery crisis reflects wider equipment problems confronting the local authority.
Bulawayo City Council’s overall fleet availability has previously been reported at just 59 percent, significantly below its operational target of 95 percent, with shortages of spare parts hampering repairs and maintenance.
Councillors have constantly called for bulk procurement of spare parts and the acquisition of additional vehicles and machinery, warning that the problem is affecting critical municipal services.
Similar equipment shortages have also affected water distribution, refuse collection and other council operations.
Council has since adopted recommendations from its health, housing and education committee aimed at improving cemetery operations and addressing equipment shortages.
