Two toddlers drown in well in Marange

Police in Marange, Manicaland Province, are investigating a tragic drowning incident in which two siblings aged two and three drowned in a water well.

The victims have been named as Tsaura Destiny, aged two, and Dorcus Machokwani, aged three, both of Dhingire Village.

According to the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the incident occurred on 17 September 2026 at around 0900 hours.

“The two minors are suspected to have been playing together before attempting to swim in the well. The victims’ mother later discovered the bodies floating in the well,” police said.

The bodies were discovered by their mother after she went to check on them. Police said investigations are continuing.

The incident has once again highlighted the danger posed by open and unsecured water sources to young children, particularly in rural areas where shallow wells and pits are common.

The Marange tragedy is not isolated. Police have in recent months recorded a series of similar drowning cases across the country:

On 24 July 2026, a seven-year-old girl drowned in a deep well at Kufakunesu homestead, Magodhlo Village, Chief Zimunya, Mutare. Police said Tadiwa Kufakunesu was sent to fetch water by her mother, Judemerry Makondo, at a deep well about 30 metres from their homestead.

She was carrying a blue five-litre bucket and went alone. She is suspected to have slipped and fallen in.

Her mother became suspicious when she took a long time to return and followed her to the well, where she saw the girl’s pink slippers and bucket floating on the edge of the well.

On 11 June 2026, two Early Childhood Development pupils drowned in a swimming pool at Hartzell Central Primary School, a United Methodist Church institution in Manicaland. The victims were named as Devian Andrew Mungazi, 5, and Lovemore Tendedziso, 6.

Two non-teaching staff members – a maintenance supervisor and a caretaker – were later arrested and charged with culpable homicide.

In another incident, a one-year-old girl drowned in a bucket of water on 31 March 2026 in Nketa, Bulawayo.

Police said the toddler had been left playing with her 11-year-old brother while their 20-year-old mother went to take a bath at around 4 pm. She was rushed to a private clinic but was pronounced dead on arrival.