Two children from Ngwaro Village, under Chief Mapanzure in Zvishavane, tragically drowned on Saturday while swimming in an abandoned open-pit chrome mine.
The young victims have been identified as 9-year-old Tendai Hove and her 11-year-old cousin, Leeroy Makungwe.
Village head Maxwell Moyo confirmed to NewZimbabwe.com that the incident occurred around 11 AM on that fateful day. He said:
The children had been sent on an errand but were drawn to the mine pits left behind from the extraction activities.
We recovered their bodies around 3 PM the same day.
The other children who were with them were swimming in the shallower areas and managed to escape unharmed.
Moyo said that the mine is owned by a group of local investors operating under the ZimAsset framework, with support from Chinese investors.
He said the community has been calling on the miners to fill in the pits after depleting the resource, especially since the mine is located just 800 meters from the village. Unfortunately, these pleas have gone unheeded.
A villager, who wished to remain anonymous, said there had been longstanding concerns about the potential for such an accident. The community feels increasingly powerless to address the issue, despite their fears. Said the villager:
The miners leave behind these open pits that fill with water during this season, attracting children to play in them.
Mining is happening alarmingly close to our homes, and despite our complaints, nothing changes.
The issue has become too political to resolve. We are left vulnerable, and our community, as well as our livestock, are at risk from these hazardous pits.
More: Pindula News