Reliving Cyclone Idai wreckage
WHEN news of bodies that had been swept into Mozambique began filtering into Zimbabwe, my mind’s eye could not exorcise the unbearable tragic image of the three-yearold Syrian, little Alan Kurdi, whose lifeless body - clad in a red shirt, blue shorts and infant shoes - lay prostrate on a beach after drowning in 2015 in an ill-fated journey to reach Europe.
This haunting image is still fresh in my mind.
Back home, in neighbouring Mozambique, dozens of bodies were recovered.
I am not sure of what they were wearing when they met their fate on that fateful day in March, but I could picture dozens of prone bodies washed ashore in school uniforms.
Local and international media have produced hundreds of articles and photographs on the destruction, each adding a vital piece that is crucial to showing graphically the sheer scale of the calamity, giving the world the opportunity to witness the disaster from the safe distance of their homes.
The images did show us the ghoulish scale of terror and grief, which galvanised relief efforts from countries, individuals, Government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) across the globe.
Of note was the elderly woman from Mbare who was captured making her donation.
The old lady walked from Mbare - a high-density suburb - to StarFM radio station to donate the few pots she had.
This act of kindness moved her fellow countrymen to find strength during this difficult time.
All these images were chronicling the disaster that befell Chimanimani people and the need to stitch torn lives back together again.
Documenting or chronicling the Chimanimani tragedy - considered the worst weather-related disaster to affect the Southern Hemisphere - needed a person who could temporarily deflect the grief and sadness in order to capture and relay what was happening on the ground.
The images could accurately capture the magnitude of the disaster.
Images do not have boundaries. Everyone wanted to capture the trail of this monstrous weather phenomenon.
I managed to capture the events firsthand.
“Minister (Monica) Mutsvangwa, we believe we are licensed to save; that our pri mary job as a media house is we are licensed to save the community we live in. As a radio station, when we heard that Cyclone Idai is coming, we started warning the community around us through Diamond FM.
We were on the ground giving reports of what was going on in Chimanimani,” these were the words of Zimpapers Group chief executive officer Pikirayi Deketeke, during the handover of donations mobilised by the company.
As a result, I felt I had a duty to reconstruct the images of the calamity.
I tried figuring out the type of suitable images to use.
However, during the journey from Harare to Mutare, a kaleidoscope of blurred visions wafted through my mind.
Luckily, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa knew that I was troubled.
She managed to convince some of the pilots to take us down to the affected areas in Chimanimani.
This was a god-sent opportunity as it made it possible to reconstruct the painful moments that befell the community.
I decided to do a life documentary as I was granted space in the small helicopter used to transport medical personnel to the affected areas.
Upon reaching Ngangu, the first thing I noticed were countless foreigners who stood in the middle of the road, the scarred valleys and razed homes.
Big alien boulders - never seen before by villagers - were strewn all over the place.
And these sights were unique for the villagers.
Those who welcomed us were both shaken and fearful.
Their faces told grim stories of grief and terror.
Villagers were at first hesitant to come close to the helicopter until they noticed Senator Mutsvangwa.
They instinctively scampered to where we were as they thought she had brought food items.
There was no communication, no road network and it was a lost township in the middle of nowhere.
Our presence livened them up as they were assured we would tell the world of the disaster that had befallen them.
At Skyline, most people, particularly the elderly, looked troubled and confused.
However, the little ones continued to frolic free-spiritedly in a makeshift amusement park created for them.
There were women seated nearby, some of whom minded children strapped on their backs and others on their lap.
They, however, seemed overcome by confusion and despair.
Our helicopter hovered above them, but the women seemed unfazed.
The preponderance of the calamity that had visited them had numbed their senses and made them stoic.
Many recounted their traumatic stories. I still believe those who survived thought Noah’s deluge was repeating itself.
It made me understand the pain and suffering these communities had experienced.
Chimanimani still needs a lot of help, either psychological or material, for it to survive.
The most immediate need was water since most water bodies had been contaminated or destroyed.
However, the swift response by Government and NGOs brought relief to affected communities.
Learners were not spared as roads and bridges were either flooded or destroyed. Vital identity documents were also lost. Chimanimani legislator Joshua Sacco had to plod his way to Mozambique through Chipinge as most roads were inaccessible.
Most affected areas included Ngangu, Kopa and Risutu, where over 150 bodies were washed away into foreign lands.
The visit by President Mnangagwa and Government ministers to the affected areas brought additional relief as authorities pledged to support the victims.
Most importantly, the President arrived just after the calamity had struck.
For the victims the whole ordeal was unforgettable.
“We were also affected, we lost our house, as it was washed away . . . It was horrible! The vibration was too much. It sounded like a helicopter,” said a teary middle-aged man, who was distraught to volunteer his name.
At Ngangu, the children were housed in a local hotel.
The kids sang folk songs and played. It was like a refugee camp. Minister Mutsvangwa managed to reassure the community that help was on the way.
The army and District Development Fund (DDF), she added, were working flat out to restore normalcy.
Moving down to Skyline, the aerial view looked as if boulders had rained from the skies.
However, the army brought hope. Near the tents, where most had taken up temporary shelter, I managed to capture an image, which made me feel relieved.
It was the image of a young boy, but unlike the tragic image of that sweet young Syrian boy washed ashore, this one wore a happy face, safely tucked in the hands of a rescuer, who happened to be an army officer.