ONE person died and three others were reportedly injured yesterday after an elevator at the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) headquarters at Chaminuka Building in Harare broke loose and plunged from the ninth to the fourth floor.
By Garikai Tunhira
Chaminuka Building is located between Kaguvi and Mukwati buildings at the main government offices along Fourth Street between Livingstone Avenue and Selous Avenue.
The number of casualties could not be ascertained at the time of going to print, but sources said the elevator was under routine maintenance when the accident occurred in the afternoon. “I just heard a loud bang, but didn’t know that it was an elevator that had plunged,” a source close to the building said.
“For now, I’m not quite sure about the number of people injured.” It was reported that technicians were working on the elevator for decommissioning and so they were on top of it.
“One of them loosened the wrong bolt and it then went on a free-fall,” another source said. Information ministry secretary George Charamba referred all questions to the principal director in the ministry, Regis Chikowore, who initially promised to give an update, but his mobile phone later went unanswered.
