A HERD of close to 400 elephants has wreaked havoc in the Mtetengwe, Mazunga and Malala villages of Beitbridge, destroying crops, council officials said on Thursday.
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Villagers are having sleepless nights trying to scare the animals believed to have been confined to their area by flooded rivers.
“It’s true there are problem elephants in those areas and we have notified the Department of Parks of Wildlife,” chief executive of Beitbridge Rural District Council Peter Moyo said.
A source at Parks and Wildlife confirmed an alarm had been raised and rangers had been dispatched to the area.
Most of the jumbos were mothers with calves and might have feared crossing the flooded Mzingwane River, said the source.
“They have caused extensive damage in the fields, rangers have been there in the last two days but the herd is large and stubborn,” the Parks and Wildlife source said.
Elias Chibi from Mtetengwe confirmed the presence of the elephant herd and said villagers were making fires to scare them from their fields.
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Villagers who received above normal rains were expecting meaningful harvests, but this is now being threatened by the animals.
Meanwhile, conservationist Jokonia Nare’s burial has been moved to tomorrow following the death of another Beitbridge sitting councillor Nickson Muleya.
Nare’s son Savious on Thursday confirmed his father’s burial would now be on Sunday.
“There have been other developments and we have been requested to postpone to Sunday,” he said.
Chief executive of Beitbridge Rural District Council Peter Moyo confirmed events were influenced by the death of Muleya.
“He (Muleya) will be buried Saturday (today) in the Malusungane village of Beitbridge while Nare will be laid to rest the next day,” he said.
Incidentally Muleya and Nare’s wards are neighbours11 and 10 respectively and there was fear of divided attendance of mourners.
Before becoming councillor Muleya, a veteran educationist, was education officer Beitbridge.
