A severe water crisis has hit the Zimbabwe Prison and Correctional Services facility, Whawha Prison Complex, in Gweru after water supply pumps from White Waters Dam were damaged.
Sources said they have been battling the crisis for the past two weeks. They said the situation was dire.
“We last had clean water almost three weeks ago. We were told that the water pumps at White Waters dam, which is our main source, broke down. Our main worry now is diarrhoea,” one source said.
He added: “Some residents have run out of patience, they thought a solution would be put in place swiftly and have now turned to fetching water from a nearby dam for home use.”
Another source said: “We all know that Whawha has inmates that can number up to about a thousand. If the authorities do not take action now, there is likely to be diarrhoea which might be very difficult to contain.”
The Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services Midlands Acting Provincial spokesperson Nevson Tagarira, told Business Times that steps have been taken to mitigate the water crisis.
“There has been a small challenge after White Waters failed to provide for clean water. But as Whawha we do have a borehole that provides clean water to inmates and the community. To meet the demand, we fetch water from the nearby dam, but it is for cleaning purposes only,” Tagarira said.
He said they have made arrangements with the Air Force of Zimbabwe, Josiah Tungamirai Airbase, to provide them with clean water.
“We have also engaged the Airforce of Zimbabwe who are providing water twice a week, thereby making sure that clean water is provided at the complex.”