BY STAFF REPORTER
A Ward 19 councillor in Nkayi has urged the government to establish emergency rescue services in the district, saying the fatal well tragedy that claimed two lives in April exposed the dangers faced by villagers when disasters strike in remote communities.
The call comes days after a Nkayi man was sentenced to jail over the incident, in which an 11-year-old Grade Two pupil drowned after being sent to retrieve a bucket from a disused well near Nkayi centre in Ward 19.
According to court proceedings, the child entered the well but failed to resurface. A neighbour then volunteered to rescue him by climbing into the well. He also became overwhelmed by the toxic gases inside and died.
A third villager later attempted the rescue but shouted that he could no longer breathe and asked to be pulled back to the surface, surviving the ordeal.
As previously reported by VicFallsLive, police attended the scene but did not have the specialised equipment required to carry out the rescue. Villagers worked tirelessly to retrieve the bodies, which were only recovered the following day.
Ward 19 Councillor Thubelihle Mabuza said the tragedy highlighted the urgent need for trained emergency rescue teams and equipment in Nkayi.
“When the tragedy happened, it was villagers who had to respond because there were no emergency rescue services. Our communities cannot continue losing lives because there is no one trained to deal with these emergencies,” Mabuza said.
He questioned why Nkayi, one of Zimbabwe’s largest rural districts, still has no dedicated emergency response unit despite regularly experiencing emergencies.
“We need trained emergency personnel and a rescue vehicle stationed in Nkayi. Hospitals are far away, police stations are far apart, and when disasters happen, villagers are left to rescue themselves,” he said.
Mabuza said the lack of emergency services extends beyond drowning incidents.
He cited veld fires as another growing concern, saying villagers have suffered significant losses because there are no emergency teams equipped to respond quickly.
“Recently, someone lost an entire house because there was no assistance to put out the fire,” he said.
He called on the government to invest in emergency rescue services for rural districts, arguing that properly trained personnel equipped with rescue vehicles and specialised equipment could respond to incidents such as well accidents, fires and other emergencies before they claim more lives.
“The April tragedy should serve as a wake-up call. Rural communities deserve the same emergency protection as those in urban areas,” he said.
