News / Local
Council to host thanksgiving prayer today
11 Feb 2015 at 06:36hrs | Views
BULAWAYO City Council will host an interdenominational day of prayer and thanksgiving today to thank God for the improvement in the city's water supply situation and to plead for more rains.
The prayers will be held at the Large City Hall from 12pm to 2pm.
Bulawayo's water supply has improved in recent months, although the council said it needed more rainfall before it could put an end to water rationing.
The city has held a number of thanksgiving prayers in the past.
The latest prayer session comes after councillor Gideon Mangena requested acting town clerk Sikhangele Zhou to organise a prayer session for rains.
The director of engineering services Simela Dube said the inflows were still low and less than a month's abstraction.
"The depletion period for Lower Ncema, Umzingwane and Upper Ncema dams could be in 2016 and continuous heavy rains are required to fill up the dams to the required levels," he said.
"The three dams are councils' critical dams in view of the pumping capacity from each dam which will affect the water distribution despite Insiza Mayfair Dam having a reasonable level of water."
Dube said if adequate rains were not received, the local authority would face water challenges.
Dam levels are currently sitting at 86,16% full for Insiza Mayfair while Mtshabezi and Lower Ncema are on 93,4% and 71,8% full, respectively.
Inyankuni, Upper Ncema and Umzingwane dams are sitting at low 29,2%, 33% and 36,8% in that order and the overall dam storage is 62,69% full.
The Department of Meteorological Services of Zimbabwe recently warned of flooding as heavy rainfall is expected in some parts of the country, but there was no mention of Matabeleland South, where Bulawayo's supply dams are situated.
The prayers will be held at the Large City Hall from 12pm to 2pm.
Bulawayo's water supply has improved in recent months, although the council said it needed more rainfall before it could put an end to water rationing.
The city has held a number of thanksgiving prayers in the past.
The latest prayer session comes after councillor Gideon Mangena requested acting town clerk Sikhangele Zhou to organise a prayer session for rains.
The director of engineering services Simela Dube said the inflows were still low and less than a month's abstraction.
"The three dams are councils' critical dams in view of the pumping capacity from each dam which will affect the water distribution despite Insiza Mayfair Dam having a reasonable level of water."
Dube said if adequate rains were not received, the local authority would face water challenges.
Dam levels are currently sitting at 86,16% full for Insiza Mayfair while Mtshabezi and Lower Ncema are on 93,4% and 71,8% full, respectively.
Inyankuni, Upper Ncema and Umzingwane dams are sitting at low 29,2%, 33% and 36,8% in that order and the overall dam storage is 62,69% full.
The Department of Meteorological Services of Zimbabwe recently warned of flooding as heavy rainfall is expected in some parts of the country, but there was no mention of Matabeleland South, where Bulawayo's supply dams are situated.
Source - Southern Eye
