The Sunday News
Leonard Ncube , Victoria Falls Reporter
COMOIL fuel garage in Lupane was yesterday partly burnt down after a speeding vehicle that had tried to pull off the highway into the service station rammed onto a fuel pump resulting in a bolt of fire.
There were no human casualties but one of the fuel pumps was completely burnt down while the vehicle, a Mitsubishi Pajero station wagon was reduced to a shell. Police in Matabeleland North could not readily comment on the accident which happened just after 7am. Witnesses at the scene said an unidentified woman was driving the vehicle with four passengers on board.
They said the vehicle approached from the direction of Victoria Falls towards Bulawayo and turned into the garage intending to stop, but because of speeding, the driver failed to control the vehicle. The driver and passengers escaped unhurt.
People had to pull the wreckage from near the garage to avoid the fire spreading to the underground fuel tanks. The driver was reportedly driving from Hwange going to Nkayi. In the vehicle was a 200-litre drum of diesel and jerry cans.
The accident exposed the lack of a fire tender in Matabeleland North’s capital Lupane, as the fire later died down on its own.
Lupane now remains with a single garage and the accident could be a big blow to motorists as the by-pass garage was strategically positioned for refueling.
Lupane Residents Association chair and businessman Mr Christopher Mazibisa who arrived at the scene after the incident said the accident was a blow to business in the town.
“This is a disaster but we hope the underground tanks were not damaged. I arrived on the scene after the fire had died down and people had pulled away the wreck. The car hit the pump and broke it causing the fire. The shed was only affected by smoke and not burnt hence we hope it will be fixed in time,” he said.
Mr Mazibisa implored the Lupane Local Board to invest in a fire tender.
“We spoke about a fire tender at a strategic planning meeting and we implored the Local Board to take it as a priority. This is a serious challenge. The other issue is the aerodrome, it needs urgent rehabilitation because if we have a mid-air plane mishap there will be nowhere to land here in Lupane, it should be rehabilitated,” he said. — @ncubeleon
