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George Maponga  and Mukudzei Chingwere

SEVEN people were yesterday rescued by the Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) while four others are feared dead after being marooned at the confluence of the Tokwe and Runde rivers in Chiredzi following a sudden spilling of a weir upstream.

Those rescued are a woman and her three daughters whose other two children were sadly swept away and the police sub-aqua unit is still searching for them. Others who are missing are Kundai Chikwava (18) and her 11 month-old daughter Shantell Hungwe.

After rescuing the four, the helicopter was sent to pick up three men trapped in the Runde in the Shindi area of Chivi.

The AFZ received a request that a family had been trapped late on Thursday, but could only to deploy an Alouette III helicopter early yesterday and quickly rescued the stranded family.

As the rescue mission was underway, reports emerged that three more men had been trapped along Runde in the Shindi area of Chivi, and the AFZ rescued them too.

AFZ Director General Operations, Air Commodore George Ngundu, yesterday confirmed the rescue mission.

“Yesterday (Thursday) we got a call that six people have been marooned between Tokwe and Runde (rivers). Unfortunately, we got the message late (and) we could not fly to that area and two members of the family were already swept away.

“When we arrived at the scene we rescued four people and we were told of three more people who were marooned in separate areas and we successfully mounted an operation to rescue them,” said Air Commodore Ngundu.

The rescued are a woman, Ms Sarah Muhloro (33) of Village 8, Marapira in Chiredzi North and her three daughters, Tracy Gambinya (15), Belinda Gambinya (12) and Talent Gambinya (3).

They were immediately taken to Colin Saunders Hospital in Triangle for assessment.

Ms Muhloro’s two other children Tryphine Gambinya (14) and Tamuka Gambinya (7) were not so lucky after they were swept away.

The Chiredzi Civil Protection Unit team led by District Development Coordinator, Mr Lovemore Chisema, praised the AFZ for rescuing Ms Muhloro and her three children.

“The rescue operation was successful but unfortunately we lost other lives,” he said. “The mother and her children who survived are stable but they need psycho-social support because they saw others being swept away.”

Mr Chisema reiterated calls for people to desist from crossing flooded rivers.

Chiredzi West legislator Cde Farai Musikavanhu and Chiredzi North MP Cde Roy Bhila, thanked President Mnangagwa’s Government for rescuing Ms Muhloro and her kids.

“It’s a tragic event where some lives were lost but we want to applaud Government and the AFZ for rescuing the marooned people after they spent more than 24 hours surrounded by flood waters,” said Cde Musikavanhu.

He hailed the close collaboration between him and his Chiredzi North counterpart, culminating in the rescue of Ms Muhloro and her children.

Cde Msikavanhu said the eight were coming from his constituency in Ward 28 to Chiredzi North’s Ward 16 when tragedy struck.

“We want to thank all other stakeholders who assisted. The AFZ arrived and airlifted the marooned people. Tongaat (Hulett Zimbabwe) also provided an ambulance which was on standby and took the rescued to Colin Saunders Hospital in Triangle for overnight observation.”

Cde Musikavanhu appealed to Government to ensure CPU teams in the Lowveld were adequately equipped to deal with the perennial problem of flooding.

“We are appealing to Government to consider that the Lowveld is bisected by big rivers which converge there and always pose a threat to communities whenever they flood and burst their banks.  CPU teams should be adequately equipped to rescue people in times of floods,” he said.

Every year, several villagers lose their lives in the Lowveld after being swept away by flooded rivers.

The AFZ was already on call to respond to the anticipated threat occasioned by tropical depression Chalane and had deployed air-power in areas like Mutare and Chipinge.

Air Commodore Ngundu said their secondary role is aid in times of disasters such as flooding, cyclones and earthquakes, among others.