A 40-year-old woman from Sotshangane Flats in Bulawayo is appealing for assistance to rebuild her family house after it was destroyed by fire.
The woman, Constance Mahachi, said the incident occurred on June 3, 2023, at around 11 pm.
The fire consumed all her property in the dining room, which doubles as a kitchen before spreading to her bedroom.
While the cause of the fire is still unknown, a report from the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) suggested that “something was thrown from outside through the main door”.
Mahachi, who stays with a 22-year-old tenant, said they were lucky to be alive as they narrowly escaped the fire.
“I had gone to town during the day to get a copy of my keys because I had lost my set. I got back around 6pm in the evening and took a nap. I woke up around 9 pm feeling hungry and I helped myself to some juice and went back to sleep. I woke up around 11 pm and searched for my phone. I then remembered that I had left it on the charger,” she narrated.
“As I opened my bedroom door, I realised that the house was on fire. I panicked. I didn’t know what to do. I went back to the bedroom, screaming. No one could hear me. The fire was spreading fast, it moved to the bedroom door. I manoeuvred my way out of the bedroom, I don’t even know how I made it unburnt.”
Mahachi said she then woke her tenant and they tried to dowse the fire but to no avail.
“My tenant then used a drum that we keep outside on the balcony to jump next door. I followed suit. We knocked for a while next door until they opened. That was how we managed to go downstairs and call for help from other neighbours. They then helped with calling the fire brigade. When they arrived they waited for a while for the water tanker. The fire was finally put out. Overall the ordeal took about an hour or so.”
Mahachi, lost all her property in the fire, including clothes and blankets.
“I’m appealing for assistance. I have nothing much left. People from ZESA came here and said I have to re-wire the house while those from city council said I need new roofing. I work at a restaurant at Renkini Bus Terminus and I do not realise much income,” she pleaded.
Those who wish to assist her can contact her via Siphathisiwe Silonda on 0773499891 or can use the following account number:
Siphathisiwe Silonda
Nostro 4307298315409
ZWL 4307298315200
