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Message: [QUOTE="Queen, post: 85070, member: 27"] Rivers swelled, warnings got ignored, and nine people, a newborn included, paid the ultimate price in a disaster Zimbabwe has sadly memorized. What happened in Insiza [LIST] [*]Thursday night went sideways in Insiza District when a vehicle tried its luck on a low bridge. [*]The flooded Tshangamutophe River in Mulula tore the car away like it weighed nothing. [*]Nine people died, one of them a newborn who barely got a start. [*]This was not a freak accident; it followed a script everyone already knows. [/LIST] The bigger national picture [LIST] [*]Days before this crash, the Civil Protection Unit laid out grim stats. [*]Since October, floods have killed at least 74 people nationwide. [*]Damage to infrastructure sits at US$107,402. [*]The rains have been ruthless, but the patterns are familiar. [/LIST] Where losses hit hardest [LIST] [*]Manicaland leads the toll with 32 deaths. [*]Mashonaland West follows at 19, Midlands at 13. [*]Mashonaland Central and Matabeleland South recorded three each. [*]Mashonaland East lost two people, while Matabeleland North and Bulawayo each lost one. [*]Injuries total 55, with Manicaland accounting for most of them. [/LIST] A rare escape from the water [LIST] [*]Not every story ended in mourning this week. [*]Near Maphisa in Matobo District, a flooded Mwewe River nearly claimed an Isuzu single-cab. [*]The vehicle missed the bridge around 10:30 am and got dragged into the current. [*]The two occupants climbed onto the roof and waited it out. [/LIST] How that rescue played out [LIST] [*]Bulawayo Chief Fire Officer Mhlangano Moyo confirmed the details. [*]Fire brigades from Maphisa and Bulawayo worked together. [*]Firefighters used throw lines and rescue gear to pull both people to safety. [*]It was a rare win in an ugly season. [/LIST] People are still pushing their luck [LIST] [*]Despite constant warnings, flooded bridges keep turning into social media daredevil stages. [*]Motorists and pedestrians are still attempting crossings. [*]The CPU says this behavior is deeply worrying. [/LIST] CPU frustration boils over [LIST] [*]CPU chief director Nathan Nkomo did not hide his concern. [*]He said the Insiza deaths might have been avoided. [*]Alerts keep going out, yet people keep ignoring them. [*]Government help comes after the fact, but prevention keeps getting brushed aside. [/LIST] Police confirm the details [LIST] [*]The Zimbabwe Republic Police released the official account. [*]National spokesperson Paul Nyathi said the crash happened around 10 pm. [*]A Toyota Noah tried to cross the flooded Tshangamutophe River in Mulula, Filabusi. [*]The driver checked the water, left the keys inside, and stepped away. [*]Another passenger took the wheel and drove onto the submerged bridge. [/LIST] The aftermath on the ground [LIST] [*]The vehicle went under, trapping everyone inside. [*]Community members helped recover the bodies the next morning. [*]Victims were taken to Filabusi District Hospital mortuary. [*]Those lost were five women, two men, a young girl, and a male toddler. [*]Only two have been formally identified. [/LIST] Social media claims muddy the waters [LIST] [*]A circulating voice note blamed a dispute inside the vehicle. [*]It claimed the owner, Njabulo, refused to cross. [*]Another passenger, named Mthandazo in the recording, allegedly insisted and drove. [*]Police say people should wait for verified findings. [/LIST] The warning nobody wants to hear [LIST] [*]Rivers keep rising, and the lessons keep repeating. [*]Floodwater can look calm, familiar, even manageable. [*]Every rainy season ends the same way when warnings get ignored. [*]No journey is worth a life, no matter how urgent it feels. [/LIST] [/QUOTE]

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