A heartbreaking incident unfolded last evening along the Masvingo-Mutare Road, claiming the lives of two senior security service members. Head CIO Gutu, Gift Nyama, and Mutimurefu Prisons, Principal Correctional Officer Masimba Blessing Mandimutsira, were involved in a fatal road accident at the Mutimurefu Prison Bus Stop.

Nyama, who was driving from a farewell party, rammed his vehicle into a stationary tractor without lights or reflectors. Mandimutsira and other officers attended the scene to assist, but their efforts were in vain. As they were helping, another vehicle driven by Officer Commanding Masvingo Central District, Chief Superintendent Simangaliso Dube, veered off the road and ran over Mandimutsira, tragically ending his life.

Nyama, who had just celebrated his life with friends and colleagues at a farewell party, broke his neck and died on the spot. Mandimutsira succumbed to his injuries at Masvingo Provincial Hospital. The loss of these two dedicated officers has sent shockwaves through the security services.

This tragic incident marks the third and fourth fatalities on this stretch of road in recent times.

Superintendent Francis Makonese, Officer-in-charge Prisons, confirmed the accident, leaving the community to grapple with the devastating news. As the investigation unfolds, one thing is certain – two families have been forever changed by this heartbreaking tragedy.