Bango told The Zimbabwean that a heavy storm on Friday caused ZESA cables to fall and kill an unspecified number of goats, a cow and a dog.
“I phoned the District Administrator, Plumtree ZESA station as well as Gwanda ZESA offices but they took long to switch off the power supplies. On Saturday afternoon a goat was electrocuted and on Sunday we woke up to discover a cow had been electrocuted,” he said in a telephone interview.
“I deployed my guards to the area but it was difficult for them to monitor the livestock’s movements at night and another goat and dog were killed today (Monday),” he added.
“ZESA must pay compensation to my people who lost their livestock due to their negligence. I called them in time but they took days to react and we are lucky that no human life was lost,” said the chief.
ZESA spokesperson, Fullard Gwasira, said: “It is unfair for people to blame us for something that has been caused by natural disasters like a storm. As ZESA, we first carry out investigations to establish the cause of the accident before we can compensate anyone,” he said.
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights led a law suit against the power utility following the death by electrocution from power cables of 10-year-old Takudzwa Nyandoro earlier this year. ZESA offered the family a measly $300 to meet funeral expenses.
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