Some villagers say they do not want to be relocated from Chimanimani which was devastated by the cyclone. Chipo Dhliwayo, who lost two...
Some villagers say they do not want to be relocated from
Chimanimani which was devastated by the cyclone.
Chipo Dhliwayo, who lost two children during Cyclone Idai,
said they had lived at their homestead well before the country’s independence
in Nyamusundu village near Biriiri Mission right on the mountain foot.
“The destruction by Cyclone Idai is the least we expected
given the time we have been at our homestead since way back. I was married while
my husband’s family was staying there. Their forefathers used to stay there but
they have not experienced what we went through,” she told the Manica Post.
Solomon Sengedza (43) of Muusha village in Chimanimani,
whose crops were swept away during the cyclone, said this is just a passing
disaster.
“I think this is a natural disaster that can attack any
other place as it did to us. Yes, we were badly affected because of the nature
of the area that we stay because it is prone to mudslides but I think this is
something that does not happen now and again.
“I lost everything in the fields. I had maize and
groundnuts that were almost reaching the harvesting stage. It is sad that I no
longer have anything and I do not know how I will survive in the next three or
four months,” he said. Marry Musona of
Skyline area in Chimanimani said being moved is not really necessary but early
warning systems and Government preparedness before disasters strike should be
the priority.
“I think disasters are everywhere even though we all know
that there are areas that are prone to disasters. In case of Chimanimani I
think this is a disaster that has come and gone. What is of primary importance
is that we have sound early warning systems and Government preparedness before
disasters strike should be the priority,” she said.
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