Zimbabwe -- Water taps in Harare run dry

SAPA-AFP via Independent Online (SA) ^ | December 07 2002

[Clive]

Water taps in Harare run dry

December 07 2002 at 11:38AM

Harare - Along with fuel shortages, bread shortages, shortages of milk and other basic commodities, residents of the Zimbabwe capital Harare now have water shortages to contend with, according to newspaper reports on Saturday.

The state-controlled Herald newspaper reported that water taps in several suburbs of the city - both high and low-income areas - had run dry.

Some residents in the poor suburbs of Epworth and Kambuzuma were fetching water from streams and shallow wells, posing a health hazard, the paper said.

In Harare's upmarket suburb of Borrowdale on Friday some households were using buckets of water from wells for their needs, they told reporters.

"More suburbs will be without water in the coming days," the Herald warned.

The problem is being blamed on the lack of foreign currency to purchase water purifying chemicals.

Quoting the city's mayor, Elias Mudzuri, the private Daily News suggested that water rationing could be in place by the end of the month. - Sapa-AFP

[Clive]

A cholera epidemic waiting to happen.

The Daily News also reported the suspicion that a large part of the problem may be that the Zanu PF government is undermining efforts by the MDC city administration so as to set up crisis which can be vested in the MDC.

[scouse]

The problem is being blamed on the lack of foreign currency to purchase water purifying chemicals.

This is probably Dubya's fault. :^))

[xJones]

Some residents in the poor suburbs of Epworth and Kambuzuma were fetching water from streams and shallow wells, posing a health hazard, the paper said.

"A cholera epidemic waiting to happen."

"The Daily News also reported the suspicion that a large part of the problem may be that the Zanu PF government is undermining efforts by the MDC city administration so as to set up crisis which can be vested in the MDC."

Will nothing be spared that country? If the MDC supporters are all going to starve or die of disease anyway, maybe they'll start rioting.

[Clive]

As I keep saying:

The Four Horsemen are riding in Zimbabwe.

[CDHart]

This is so horrible. I sent an e-mail to Kofi Annan telling him that if the U.N. wanted to do something useful, they could start with helping Zimbabwe. No answer, of course.

Carolyn

[wunderkind54]

To #2 Scouse; Although said tongue-in-cheek, just wait. Bush will be the villain in this debacle soon enough! America with its wealth is to alleviate all misery on this planet regardless of the horrible events that led to the situation. Mugabe is a murderous thug that has turned a once self-sufficient exporter of grain into a potential famine-in waiting. This latest post about water shortage is merely the newest misery visited upon that misfortunate country...and you just watch...it will be Americas fault!

[Clive]

-

[norton]

When is the next UN council meeting on income redistribution anyway?

(PS, since the enlightened governments of Africa have almost universally rejected GM grain from the US - I wonder if literally murdering your opposition via famine and now thirst and disease might not be considered a genetic modification in it's own right?)

[Larry Lucido]

No problem. Don't they have thousands of "war veterans" sitting around waiting for something to do? Just put them to work digging more wells.

/sarcasm

[struwwelpeter]

My apartment in the east Ukraine had no running water. I had to pay someone to carry buckets of water from a well ten blocks away and up 5 flights of stairs to fill my bathtub/reservoir.

Washing up over there was heating a bucket up on the stove, standing in a basin, and rubbing up and down with a sponge. Drinking water, of course, had to be bought in a store.

But the night life...

[Travis McGee]

No doubt!