Tsholotsho villagers living in fear of weather vagaries
Thandeka Matebesi
TSHOLOTSHO – Nomthandazo Ncube of Godzo village in Ward 13, Tsholotsho has for the past month, been sleeping with one eye open fearing that even the mildest of rain and or wind might cause her heavily cracked two bedroomed house to suddenly degenerate into rubble on top of her and her kids.
Alongside 25 other houses in the area, Ncube’s house was badly damaged by strong winds that affected the area earlier this month.
Together with her two minor children, she is forced to seek refuge at her brother’s place whenever heavy rains or strong winds threaten or look imminent.
“It has been almost a month since the tempest hit our village and damaged our houses. Since then, I have not managed to fix my house. As a result, I don’t sleep soundly at night because I have to closely pay attention to the weather outside. If I so much as sleep like a dead woman I wouldn’t be able to assess the intensity of the weather and that is a risk I cannot take. I now live in perpetual terror to the extent that when it is raining or when there strong winds, we seek refuge at my brother’s place for safety,” said Ncube.
Godzo Village Head, Mr Smile Green said many others in his village were on the receiving end of the strong winds and find themselves in the same predicament as Ncube. He also revealed that when bad weather threatens or descends on the village, the only respite available is to seek refuge at relatives and friends’ households in the area.
” This month we witnessed very strong winds that threatened to leave 26 families sleeping in the open. The winds inflicted so much damage ranging from displacing roofs, leaving them lying on the ground to creating huge open cracks on school classrooms and houses. The area’s shop buildings were hardest hit and need renovation and rebuilding,” said Green.
Green said the affected villagers had reported the matter to the local Councillor who promised to take it further but in the meantime most families remain stranded.
Contacted for comment, Ward 13 Councillor Soka Ngwenya confirmed that he had been notified of the situation and had taken it up with the District Administrator. Councillor Ngwenya also revealed that the winds had also affected nearby Magama Mission School.
According to a parliamentary report released earlier this year, some Tsholotsho victims of the 2017 Cyclone Dineo, which was downgraded to a tropical storm, in are still living in tents four years after the disaster.
