Illegal mining eats into Kwekwe suburbs, houses in danger of sinking

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Illegal mining operations are reportedly threatening Kwekwe’s residential areas, including Newtown suburbs and near an old age home on Takawira Avenue.

Residents are concerned about safety and ground instability, feeling let down by authorities despite the police presence.

The city, known for its mining history, is experiencing widespread destruction and environmental degradation, with illegal miners operating clandestinely in neighborhoods.

Sometime in 2023 seven pupils at Globe and Phoenix Primary School in Kwekwe were injured when their classroom block caved in due to illegal mining activities.

Although only one classroom collapsed, findings from the Department of Civil Protection revealed that the whole area was in danger.

In communal areas around the city, livestock have been the main victims of the earth giving in. But in another incident near the Globe and Phoenix compound last May, a house collapsed and was swallowed by a mine tunnel, authorities said.

Zwnews