By Staff Reporter: 12 August 2014
Talk of a pest control exercise gone awry wrong.
Eleven families in Harare were left homeless and are now living in the open after an attempt to burn a snake went terribly wrong. This happened at Plot Number 4 , Reinharm Farm in Dziwarasekwa in the capital city, Harare. Two thatched farmhouses they were living in were razed to the ground as a result. The incident happened on Monday last week. All the families, who are tenants at the plot lost property worth thousands of dollars in the fire.
It is alleged the landlady, Lovejoy Karidza and her cousin Blessing Masango and also an un-named tenant, saw the snake slither into a hole while cleaning an empty swimming pool on the property. One suggested they employ an old pest control trick, burning with diesel. However, the fire went out of hand and lapped at the nearby grass, resulting in a serious and terrifying inferno that gained ground, swallowing the thatched main house nearby.
The matter was reported to Malbereign Police Station.
To add more salt to the wound, the owner of the property is believed to be looking for a potential buyer to sell the plot, leaving the tenants homeless. "We fear we will be evicted by the new owner of the property", Terence Kasirori one of the tenants said. Another tenant indicated that she did not know how she was going to survive as she was left with nothing. "We are currently staying in the open and the situation is worrisome. We are appealing to the government and well wishers to offer us any kind of assistance", she said.