By Burzil Dube
Various developments and activities are currently happening in the Lowveld region especially in the tourism front as evidenced by an increase on visitor arrivals.
The Lowveld boasts of tourist attractions such as Gonarezhou National Park, Save Conservancy and Malilangwe among others.
Thanks to social media power whose impetus for easier communication as well as marketing is second to none, these attractions are getting more publicity.
As earlier alluded in previous travelling and touring columns, the Lowveld region is situated in the eastern part of the country and areas covered include Chiredzi, Masvingo, Triangle among others which is also home to the country’s second largest game reserve after Hwange National Park.
This particular region has an abundance of all sorts of wild animals, cultural artefacts untapped flora and fauna as the list is endless in its quest to become a tourism game changer.
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Talking of game changer endeavours, this week’s column is not about the above mentioned subject but would slightly delve into the Kamandama Mine Disaster of 1972 which if properly marketed can revolutionaries the tourism industry within Hwange district and beyond.
Last week Yours Truly was celebrating the Cotton Jubilee since the inception of his travelling and touring column whose main thrust is promotion of the country’s tourism industry which of late has been in the doldrums due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
A golden jubilee beckons at Hwange Colliery where the coal mine would be commemorating the untimely death of 427 miners who perished in the Kamandama Mine underground shaft on June 6 1972 during the mid morning hours of this fateful day.
Every year, June 6 is commemorated the world over as Kamandama Mine Disaster and is still considered to be the worst mining disaster ever recorded where all miners perished and were never brought to surface.
The dead miners comprised nationals of Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, South Africa, Angola, Tanzania, Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique, United Kingdom, France and Portugal among others.
A gigantic cenotaph was recently constructed where the names of all the 427 departed miners are inscribed on the bronze embossed plaque commemorating their gallant mining efforts when they met their ultimate fate.
It is believed that their deaths were caused by methane gas explosion as the miners were working in a tunnel directly underneath Madumabisa Mountain situated about four kilometres from entrance of Kamandama underground shaft.
While methane gas explosion was the immediate cause of miners’ demise, it is also believed that coal dust explosion exacerbated the situation further rendering all rescue efforts a nullity resulting in Gordon Livingstone-Blevins the then general manager of Wankie Colliery Company calling off the whole operation after three days.
The then president of Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Clifford Dupont in one of his memoirs wrote: “In June, 1972, one of the greatest natural disasters to hit the country took place, when an underground explosion occurred in Wankie No.2 Colliery. Four hundred and twenty-six miners lost their lives – thirty six Europeans and three hundred and ninety Africans. Apart from the one hundred and seventy-six Rhodesians who died, there were ninety-one Zambians, fifty-two from Mozambique, thirty-seven from Malawi, thirty Tanzanians, fourteen Britons, twelve South Africans, nine from South West Africa, four from the Caprivi Strip, and one from Botswana.
“The disaster provoked reaction throughout the world, and messages of sympathy poured in from all quarters, and included those from Queen Elizabeth, Sir Alec Douglas-Home, the British Foreign Secretary, the Pope, and the Prime Minister of South Africa, Mr. B. J. Vorster.
“I visited the colliery the following day, and I think this was one of the most depressing and indeed most distressing days I have ever spent in my life. The wives of the African miners were wailing.
“Most of the European relatives were in a severe state of shock, and one felt completely helpless at not ‘being able to do anything to relieve their distress.
“The whole country was stunned by this disaster, and with the well-known generosity of Rhodesians, various organisations as well as individuals immediately set up funds for the relief of those who had been affected by the disaster. ”
Most players in the tourism industry have in the past been looking at ways on how they can incorporate the Kamandama Memorial Site as part of their promotional package in a similar manner like what is done with Cecil John Rhodes grave in the Matopo hills.
As we heard towards the epic jubilee, Yours Truly would be occasionally ‘dishing out’ tidings concerning this sombre but memorable occasion which somehow managed to transform safety standards within the global mining industry.
To Hwange-based cultural ensemble groups such as Pezhuba Pachena, Vulindlela, Achimwene among others this is the opportune moment to show the world that there is abundant talent in Matabeleland North province.
Till we meet again in the next column.
- Comments always welcome on: dubebasill@gmail.com or Twitter@DubeBurzil