Firstly, our deepest condolences to the families of the six Dynamos Football Club fans that perished after the vehicle they were travelling in was in involved in an accident last week.
The soccer supporters were going to Zvishavane to watch Dynamos play championship rivals FC Platinum at Mandava Stadium.
Dynamos won the tie 1-0 to climb to the top of the log with a game to spare. The Harare giants need to win their last match against Kiglon to snatch the crown from FC Platinum.
It will go down as one of the greatest comebacks by Dynamos who, during mid-season, appeared to have run out of steam to the extent that their former coach Lloyd Mutasa had ruled out winning the coveted prize.
But hardly four months after that proclamation, DeMbare appear to be edging towards glory and who could begrudge their multitudes of supporters for parading the “Zorai Butter” show at home and away?
Unlike when their team was playing badly, the Dynamos fans are now trooping alongside their team even when the Callisto Pasuwa-coached side is playing away.
No wonder there were hundreds of fans who travelled to Zvishavane for the decisive match against FC Platinum.
Unfortunately in that jaunt, six people lost their lives on their way to the game. It is sad that the deceased who had left their homes for an exciting excursion failed to make it to Zvishavane. Their families had to painfully receive them back home in coffins.
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The reason behind the accident is still not ascertained.
The half a dozen people died after an accident that occurred at the 200km peg along the Bulawayo-Masvingo Road when a commuter omnibus carrying 14 passengers burst its left rear tyre.
One person died on the spot and the others died later in different hospitals after sustaining serious injuries.
While we believe that it is the right of soccer fans to be excited ahead of their teams’ big matches, we urge them to exercise restraint.
Not that we are saying the fans that were on this particular bus did anything to cause the accident, but people must exercise certain self-discipline to avoid dangerous events from happening.
There are cases where accidents have been caused by passengers encouraging drivers to speed or to proceed on roads that are not navigable.
We are not saying anything like this happened, but it is necessary to advise each other against such tendencies especially as we are now in the rainy season.
Drivers of public transport must always ensure their vehicles are suitable for the trips they are taking. Wheels are the first port of call when checking the fitness of one’s vehicle before travelling. Life is too precious to lose.
Soccer fans must organise themselves in clusters and ensure those that will be behind the wheel are not taking alcohol. Partaking of alcohol always results in poor judgment.
