Gweru City Council is reportedly operating with one obsolete fire tender, a situation that has caused Council’s fire fighters to react slowly to outbreaks of fire or road accidents.
Town clerk Daniel Matawu confirmed the development, adding the city’s sole fire tender was acquired 10 years ago.
He said council used to have four fire tenders, three of which have since been grounded due to shortage of spares.
“We have one fire tender operating and the other one still needs to be fitted with spare parts.
“We need about four fire tenders to effectively serve the city,” Matawu said.
“The ones operating are 10 years old and we need a new fleet, but they are expensive. We are looking at purchasing second-hand fire tenders which cost about $30 000 each.”
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The city has an estimated population of 300 000 people.
Sometime last year and early this year, three Mkoba houses were razed to the ground after fire fighters failed to react to the reports timeously.
Gweru Residents’ and Ratepayers’ Association chairperson Cornelius Selipiwe urged council to prioritise acquisition of new fire tenders.