Chronicle Editor
Leonard Ncube , Victoria Falls Reporter
HWANGE mining town and its environs are not as cosy and comfy as one might think. It is characterised by polluted air from coal, dusty skies, extremely high temperatures, buzzing mosquitoes, dry water taps, a putrid smell of human waste from messed public ablution facilities and polluted water bodies.
Horrifying stories of attacks by crocodiles at water pools and old disused mines shafts, people being buried alive by coke rubble at old coal dumpsites and underground fires that have crippled others are but part of the catalogue of a sad Hwange story.
There have been numerous reports of residents who have died in disused tunnels as they scavenge for coke and the latest one is that of a 16-year-old boy who died last Saturday.
Hwange residents use coke for cooking and they sell some to truck drivers.
The conditions of living in the coal mining town literally put residents’ lives at risk as they try to eke a living or improvise.
Last week on Monday an eight-year-old girl Alisha Muzvite was seriously burnt by an underground coal fire at an old mine dump in Number 3.
She left home to go and relieve herself in the bush around 4PM in the company of her 15-year-old aunt Chelsea Ncube when tragedy struck.
While in the bush, Alisha reportedly climbed a small hill made of rubble from the old mine dump and suddenly she was literally swallowed by the ground to waist level after she stepped on an underground fire spot.
She is battling for life at Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo with burns on the legs, arms, stomach and chest.
A Chronicle news crew visited the area on Saturday evening and observed a sorry situation in Number 3 also known as Makwika Village.
Dilapidated houses, dry water taps and frequent visits to the bush is the order of the day, according to residents.
Some residents were however, not willing to be identified for fear of being victimised by authorities.
The area is administered by Hwange Colliery Company which supplies water and electricity. It also collects rentals from the residents.
Ms Rebecca Moyo who requested not to be photographed said living in Hwange was torturous.
“We wake up as early as 4AM to queue for water which only comes out between 5AM and 7AM. We have to fill containers so that we have water to drink, bath and do washing. As for the toilet, people now use the bush to relieve themselves to save water. Cleaners clean the toilet between 5AM and 7AM and if you don’t use it at that time, it means you have to go to the bush,” said Ms Moyo.
Open defecation is a common phenomenon in parts of the country, and in Hwange it has become excessive because of lack of water.
Makwika is divided into A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H sections and each has about 80 households that share a single toilet block.
Each toilet initially had four chambers for men and four for women, and only two on each side are functional but without the flushing system.
Residents use a bucket system whenever they use it.
From 7AM until the next morning, the toilets will be messed up and people resort to using the bush. Kids make the majority of those using the bush as parents seek to protect them from a health hazard.
At night most residents relieve themselves in buckets and empty them in the morning while others risk being attacked by wild animals as they enter the nearby bush to relieve themselves.
The news crew followed the track into the bush where Alisha was burnt.
There is human stool starting from just a few metres from the houses and along the way.
The exact point where Alisha was burnt can be close to a kilometre away.
Asked why they had to go that far, Chelsea said there were people working in the nearby fields and some conducting a church service at a shrine so the girls had to go further away.
“I am new here and did not know. There were people working on the fields and she went behind what looked like a big rock. As she climbed it, that is when she suddenly fell in like she had fallen into a pit. She screamed once and as I ran towards her, she said ‘sengifile mancane’.
“There was smoke coming out like a volcano and I could see peels from her skin being thrown out like it was coming from a pot on fire. I couldn’t reach her as I feared I could also sink. I looked for a stick which I used to test the strength of the ground and when I reached her, I pulled her up but it was like there was something pulling her down,” said Chelsea.
When she finally pulled out Alisha, the skin on her lower body and arms had peeled off.
Her shoes were burnt like they have been put on burning charcoal.
She carried her home from where the girl’s father carried her on his back to the nearby clinic and a car took her to Hwange Colliery Hospital.
Another resident said people have over the years been frequenting the area as they also cut thatch grass there.
The spot where she was burnt looks like a fireplace with reddish ashes as opposed to the surrounding darkish ground.
Hwange Colliery officials had also erected sign posts warning residents about dangers of underground fires.
“These sign posts were put three days after the incident. All along no one cared about the issue until the girl got injured. We have other areas that have underground fires like at the railway crossing between Number 2 and Number 3 as well as near cattle pens where another boy was burnt in 2019,” said the resident.
Residents said four people have been burnt by underground fires since 2019.
They implored Hwange Colliery to secure the dangerous places and also to improve conditions of living.
“Whenever they do blasting the vibration affects houses. If you go inside the house, you can see someone outside through the cracks. They are dusty and we always kill snakes and scorpions which makes living here a nightmare,” said a resident.
“People pay rent and those who are in arrears have had electricity disconnected. It is our wish that the colliery becomes sensitive to people’s needs and repair the houses and supply water daily so that people stop going into the bush.”
Hwange Local Board Ward 15 Councillor Lovemore Ncube who lives in Number 3 said residents have been using the bush to relive themselves for a long time due to a decade long water problem.
“People use the bush because there is no water to use in the toilets. Water only comes out between 5AM and 7AM, it usually has low pressure resulting in many parts of the suburb not getting it. So, the cleaners fill a drum from where people fetch to flush the toilet.
“The colliery has said it has no capacity to supply enough water because its Zambezi water line is not working and have been supplying the limited water from boreholes and this has been going on for the past 10 to 15 years,” said Clr Ncube.
He said the Local Board councillors have no jurisdiction to attend to the issue of Makwika and other concession areas which were administered by Hwange Colliery.
“The biggest challenge is the unusual setup in Hwange. This is a private concession whose authority is Hwange Colliery hence as councillors we are more like mere advocates because we don’t plan for the area. We are still waiting for the incorporation of Hwange as this is the only solution to these problems because if you look Hwange is the only town with compounds while other mining towns have abolished that,” said Cllr Ncube.
With regards to Alisha’s issue, stakeholders have partnered with the company to raise awareness among residents.
Greater Whange Residents Trust co-ordinator Mr Fidelis Chima said there was a need for a permanent solution to Hwange issues.
He said the residents’ association had requested a meeting with Hwange Colliery Company management where residents were expected to air their grievances.
“As residents association we want the Colliery to secure all dangerous areas, erect warning signs and intensify awareness regarding fire hazards,” he said.
While residents accuse the company of failing to deliver services such as water supply which they allege is the reason why people use the bush to relieve themselves, Hwange Colliery Company corporate affairs manager Dr Beauty Mutombe blamed residents for trespassing into known restricted areas and damaging infrastructure.
“Warning signs have been erected and we are carrying out awareness campaigns. People know the no-go areas and they even know that they are not allowed to farm on those areas yet they continue doing so. I want to clarify that the girl had not gone to relieve herself as is claimed, she had actually gone to get clay soil which people eat.
“Hwange coal has high sulphur and is subject to fires and as such we will continue to carry out awareness campaigns.
We have also acquired a drone which has been licensed and currently we are training a pilot so that it can be in the air to survey the area. As for water, those claims are not true, the community vandalised pipes as they dig their fields and we can’t replace them overnight,” she said.
Environmental Management Agency Matabeleland North provincial manager Mrs Chipo Mpofu-Zuze said she was making inquiries about the underground issues and environmental hazards in Hwange. — @ncubeleon
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