Hailstorm leaves 42 families homeless

ABOUT 42 families in Zvimba District were left homeless after a hailstorm left a trail of destruction last week, with the Civil Protection Unit calling on well-wishers to assist the victims.

In an interview, assistant district administrator for Zvimba Mrs Loretta Jonasi said three families had their houses completely destroyed.

The other 39 homesteads, she said, had their roofs ripped off in heavy rains that fell on October 15.

There were no deaths or injuries reported.

“We are appealing to well-wishers who can assist these families. We are already in the rainy season, but the families are living in the open,” said Mrs Jonasi.

“At the moment, most of them do not have funds to repair their houses, so it is a very sad situation.”

Mrs Jonasi said at least 10 families had since rehabilitated their houses while the other 32 families were still in need of assistance, especially on building materials such as cement, asbestos and iron sheets.

She said some of the families were also left exposed to hunger as their food stocks were destroyed in the storm.

Mrs Jonasi said six other families in Mutorashanga had their homes destroyed by veld fires and the local CPU would be visiting the families to assess damage and the kind of assistance required.