Floods drown three, trap four on swollen rivers in Matabeleland

The flood death toll is rising in the South. Police in Matabeleland South confirm three people have drowned in separate river incidents, with four more still stranded. Inspector Chiratidzo Dube gave the grim breakdown. In Bulilima, that group of four people who went to harvest mopane worms last week remains stuck on an island in the Thekwane River. They crossed one part of the river fine in their donkey cart in the morning, but on the return trip that evening, found the next section flooded. When they turned back, the first part was also too high, trapping them where they are now.

A man named Sibusiso Ndlovu left a business center in Mawabeni to go home. He never arrived. His body turned up later on the bank of the Umzingwane River. Another man, Sydne Dube, tried to cross the flooded Bhadi River near Esigodini. Witnesses said the bridge was underwater, but he tried to walk across the middle anyway. The current took him. Locals looked for his body but could not find it.

The third drowning happened in Gwanda on the Tuli River. A gold panner named Trust Nyathi got trapped by rising water with others, taking shelter on an island. The next day, as the group tried to get to shore, he refused to move and climbed a tree. His mother, Precious Dube, lost her footing in the water while the others were crossing and was swept away. Police are telling everyone to stop trying to cross flooded rivers and for parents to watch their kids near water.