The woman driving one of the cars that was involved in an accident with ZEC chairperson, priscilla Chigumba has spoken out.
Full statement below:
Yesterday, after a short visit to my sister with my 3-year-old daughter, we were involved in a horrendous car accident. I don’t post much on Facebook, but as I sit at MIC waiting for an MRI after visiting a spinal specialist, I’m thinking about how I can help advocate for the repair of Zimbabwe’s road networks. By the grace of God, whose presence I felt so strongly during the ordeal, no one was killed.
A 300-series Land Cruiser, which was behind a truck ahead of me, suddenly pulled into the oncoming traffic lane. A small blue vehicle (I think it was a Honda Fit) that had been following me for most of the way was now behind the Land Cruiser, with me behind them. Had that Honda still been behind me and the tanker hit them, that little family with their precious baby likely wouldn’t have survived. I had left a safe distance between myself and the vehicles ahead.
Seeing what was unfolding, I began to brake and steer to the left. The petrol tanker coming toward us was also trying to swerve off the road on his side but collided with the front right of the Land Cruiser, spinning it off the road. That impact directed the tanker’s cab toward me. Thankfully, it hit just behind my door on the right side, and then the impact with my back right wheel (which was completely sheared off) flipped my car over, landing us on the roof. My baby girl, thankfully, had been safely asleep in her car seat, for which I am so grateful. She woke up to both of us hanging upside down in our seatbelts, with blood pouring down her little face. After unclipping myself and dropping down, I crawled through to unclip her from her seat. The tanker driver was the first to reach our vehicle and assist in getting us out.
There are so many things I’m grateful for in this incident, but mostly, I pray that this post reaches the right person and helps create real awareness of the severity of our road conditions. The road to Chirundu is notoriously bad, yet it is a major artery for commerce and travel in our country. How many lives must be lost before we take action? Wear your seatbelts! Get child safety seats for your children! Always leave a safe distance between yourself and the vehicle in front of you! When it’s not your time, it’s not your time. Our nation is full of kind, desperate, God-loving people who deserve the basic right to safe travel. There is so much that can and should be done. Lord, help us find the way forward!
