13-Year-Old Boy Poisons River That Serves Five Villages In Beitbridge
A 13-year-old boy is accused of contaminating a river that provides water to both livestock and residents from at least five villages in Ward 7, Mutetenwa, Beitbridge, by allegedly pouring a toxic herbicide into its waters last Monday.
The specific herbicide involved is still undergoing verification by experts.
According to Nelson Mohadi, the senior village head of Mutetenwa, fish in the stream have begun to die, and a donkey that drank from the river succumbed to the poison on the same day. Said Mohadi:
The community is in panic mode following this incident and we have since notified the police and the local Civil Protection Committee about the incident.
In the interim, we advise villagers not to drink or use the water from domestic chores until tests from the Civil Protection Committee confirm the extent of the damage.
Kraal head Siphiwe Muleya, from the Tshambudzi area where the boy resides, said that local authorities are working with the police to determine the motive behind the incident.
She further urged all community members to rely on borehole water and refrain from fishing in the river until the situation is fully resolved. She said:
We picked up the container of the herbicide which we have given to agriculture experts to verify and will also help in investigations.
The police are now handling the matter and the parents of the same boy have since been notified about this worrying incident.
She said the dead fish from the river had been buried to prevent any risk of human consumption. Added Chibi:
We are already moving around villages warning people about the danger from the herbicide that was poured into the river.
At the same time, I want to strongly encourage community members to avoid drinking water or fishing from this river until it has been confirmed to be safe by experts.
A communal farmer in the La Tenis area, Nyelisani Sibanda, said she immediately alerted the local traditional leaders after noting the river had turned purple. She said:
I was working in my field which is just close to the river and when I came here to get water it had turned purple.
A few minutes later some fish were dying on their own. I immediately called the local traditional leaders who then informed the rest of the community leaders about this incident. They then said that we must not drink or fetch water from the river.
We chased away some livestock that were drinking water from this point, unfortunately, one donkey died near our business centre.
Police Officer Commanding Beitbridge District Chief Superintendent Melusi Ncube said they sent a team to investigate the matter, which is working with the Civil Protection Committee members.
More: The Herald
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