A veld fire victim’s last supper that he never had
WHEN Ms Locadia Mupande dished and set aside lunch for her husband Oscar Mudimba on Monday afternoon, it never crossed her mind that he may not return home, neither did she ever entertain the thought that she would be a widow by that same evening.
Her husband, Oliver Mudimba, is one of the 10 men who died while trying to put out a fire near Red Rose Mine in Esigodini.
The tragic incident occurred at Lot 43 Farm when workers were trying to contain a raging veld fire which was sweeping through the property.
The couple had two children aged three and five, and Locadia’s next move is uncertain after the tragic loss of her husband and evidence is written all over her that she is staring at the grim effects of poverty with little options in her hands. She may have to leave the farm and return to Mlibizi in Binga District, right on the banks of the Zambezi River.
Government officials including the Deputy Minister of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Cde Barbara Rwodzi and Minister of State for Matabeleland South Provincial Affairs Cde Abednico Ncube visited the families and the atmosphere was sombre.
Close relatives and community members could not hide their grief and expressed it by crying uncontrollably as Government officials arrived at the mine compound where the bereaved had gathered. Speaking on behalf of the widow, her mother-in-law, Ms Nolia Mudimba said there was terrible poverty back home in Binga and appealed to the Government for assistance as many families back home survived on selling baobab fruits and on gardening projects along the banks of the Zambezi River.
“We appeal for financial assistance to pay school fees for children who are now orphaned and to buy food because our area is dry, there is no rainfall. We survive by growing crops in gardens along the Zambezi River. Sometimes hippos from the river come and eat our crops, so our life is really difficult. We survive on selling baobab fruits and goats, if you have some, but he (deceased) was still young and just starting out with his family after getting a job at the farm, so he had not yet managed to get anything meaningful. So, what is needed most is money for school fees, since he is gone, leaving behind two very young children. His younger brother is still too young and is not in a position to take care of these children as he is still in school, so we foresee a challenge in the welfare of these children and we appeal to the Government to intervene. What has happened here is a tragedy and we do not know what to do.”
Deputy Minister Rwodzi said the Government would take care of the welfare of the children left behind, while her ministry will lobby for stiffer penalties for people who start fires during the fire season.
“These 10 men who have left us are our fathers, our sons, our brothers. They have lost their lives while they were trying to protect all of us, our environment and our possessions. They were committed to a selfless cause and sacrificed their lives. They are environmental heroes and their efforts are recognised. As a ministry we have started lobbying for harsher penalties for people who start fires during the veld fire season and we hope that ongoing investigations will lead us to the arrest and conviction of the person who started this fire that has led to such a tragedy,” said Cde Rwodzi.
The police have since named the victims of the fire incident, although DNA technology will be used to distinguish the identities of five of the men who were burnt beyond recognition. The police identified the victims as: Kesari Sibanda (53) of Marula in Figtree, Ian Mudimba (38) of Binga, Simon Mdlongwa (39), Nelisingwane Dlamini (47) of GMB Esigodini, Luzibo Tshuma of Chiziya Malundu Village in Binga, Oliver Mudimba (39) of Binga, Bafana Moyo (53) of Dimbamiwa Village in Nkayi, England Moyo aged (20) of Nketa 8 in Bulawayo, Thabani Mpofu (46) of Gwelutshena Village in Nkayi and Menelisi Ngwenya (20) of Mandangema Village in Nkayi.
A total of 18 people have so far been killed by veld fires that have swept through the country since the onset of the fire season on 31 July. Environmental Management Agency (EMA) spokesperson Mrs Amkela Sidange said the number was worrying especially that the country was still in the fire season. She said more deaths could be recorded if no mitigation measures were put in place.
“Eighteen lives have so far been lost in veld fire incidences to date, since the start of the fire season on July 31. In 2010, the country recorded 25 deaths for the whole season. If no action to mitigate the fires is taken, this season might turn out to be the worst. The fire season has not ended and it’s possible that the deaths could surpass the 2010 figures if no action is taken on time to prevent veld fires,” she said.
EMA has so far recorded more than 774 fire incidences that burnt 163 820.05 ha of veld as at the first week of October.
EMA in its latest report highlighted that since the beginning of the fire restriction period a total of 5 386 incidences burning 1 244 227,34 ha were recorded. The area burnt increased by 58,6 percent from 784 725,23 ha that was burnt at the same period in 2021.
The agency said a total of 5 386 incidences have so far been recorded as compared to 3 410 incidences recorded in 2021 indicating a 57,9 percent increase. Runaway fires destroy more than 1 million hectares of land on average annually in Zimbabwe with EMA estimating that property worth US$300 000 is lost to veld fires annually.
The worst fires were recorded in 2012 where US$479 723 property was lost. Veld fires are negatively affecting the strategic sectors of the economy such as agriculture, tourism and communication. Statutory Instrument 7 of 2007 of the Environmental Management (Environmental Impact Assessment and Ecosystems Protection) Regulations states that no person must start a fire deliberately during the fire season. In case of a fire outbreak, any person within that vicinity of the fire must extinguish the fire even if they are not the owner of the land or property.