THE Zimbabwe Republic Police is urging parents to ensure the safety of their children by
preventing them from playing near water bodies in order to avert loss of lives.
The advice comes after a 10-year-old boy Doxford Farm, in Mazowe drowned in a pool
recently.
Provincial police spokesperson, Sergeant Major Samuel Chikasha, confirmed that on 26
November in the afternoon, the child who drowned was with three other boys. They were
herding cattle when they opted to go for swimming.
The quartet headed for the pool.
The dead boy jumped right at the centre of the pool and he drowned.
On noticing that their friend had disappeared in water, one of the boys rushed home to inform
Learnmore Ngwenya (31) and Francis Phiri (46), who rushed to the scene.
They searched and managed to retrieve the boy’s body.
The matter was reported to ZRP Jumbo Base, who also attended the scene. Police examined
the boy’s body. No injuries were noted.
Later, the father of the boy was informed about the incident. The body of the boy was taken
to Concession Hospital Mortuary for post mortem.
The same day, a similar incident occurred at Siyalima Farm, in Guruve, where a three-year-
old left in the company of his five-year-old sister, drowned in a two- metre deep pool.
Sergeant Major Samuel Chikasha said that Regina Zhanda left her children alone at home
when she went to the fields.
Upon her return home, around 5pm, she noticed her daughter playing alone while the son was
missing.
She was accompanied by her sister, Jestina Zhanda, of the same plot in conducting a search
for the boy.
Zhanda’s sister went to a nearby pool that is 100 meters away from the homestead. That is
where she found the boy’s body floating in water.
She informed Morven Ndoro, aged 55, who managed to retrieve the body from the pool.
A report was made to ZRP Guruve, who attended the scene.
ZRP is appealing to members of the public to always ensure safety of their children to avoid
them wandering off to areas which are death traps.
The police also called for children to be accompanied by elders when they go to pastures
herding cattle since they also tend to swim during that time.