Story by Memory Chamisa
THE two children who were electrocuted in Kuwadzana suburb of Harare on Monday have been buried at Mbudzi Cemetery, with the family and community battling to come to terms with the incident.
What was supposed to be a normal morning for the Makwindi family, has left the Kuwadzana community in shock as two of the children were electrocuted in their sleep.
Junior Makwindi (4) and Tinotenda Tineyi Maketo (6) were electrocuted after getting into contact with an upright refrigerator in a room they were sleeping.
Fighting tears, Faith Makwindi, an aunt to the deceased, narrated the sad incident.
“Junior and Tinotenda were sleeping in the dining room together with other children. I woke up early and was doing the dishes outside. I then sent Tino who was also awake to wake the other two up and get ready for school. When he tried lifting Junior up, he felt the electrical current and dropped him on the floor and came out to call me. I went inside to see when I started shaking them and they were not responsive,” she said.
“I them called Gogo who stays next door who came in and looked at them and told me to take them to the clinic. We carried them to the clinic not knowing they were already dead. When we got there, the nurses pronounced them dead. I’m still in shock and hurt as I’m the one who raised them and was a mother to them. Their mother is my sister, but I was the one staying with them.”
Their grandfather, Mr Ignatius Makwindi who was at work on the fateful day, is yet to come to terms with the shocking incident.
“I left home for work on Monday morning, but before I got to work, I received news of their death. The fridge is still new and I don’t understand how they were electrocuted. ZESA has since disconnected electricity so that they ascertain what really happened,” he narrated.
The family has been robbed of two innocent lives that will never reach their full potential nor will their laughter and echoes be felt in the home.
