A Kwekwe family had a lucky escape after part of their house collapsed into a disused mining tunnel beneath them. The Rusike family had unknowingly been living dangerously above a huge underground mining void for years.
The disaster occurred in the Globe and Phoenix area of Kwekwe, the same neighbourhood where Globe and Phoenix Primary School recently subsided into mine tunnels.
Thankfully, the family noticed strange noises from underground mining activity just before the collapse and evacuated the house in time. When rescue crews arrived, part of the house had already subsided into the abandoned mining tunnel.
Government departments including the Ministry of Mines and Environmental Management Agency inspected the damage and are investigating how long the mining tunnels have lain neglected and dangerous beneath the area.
