Harare fuel tanker explosion: Tanker Driver speaks out

"THIS is not your fuel. It's for the company its better you find a way of getting to the hospital than stopping us from collecting this petrol. This is our chance to make money and we can even beat you for that," the state controlled 'The Herald' reported on Tuesday.

These were the words of one of the men who threatened the tanker driver before the explosion that claimed three people and left 16 others seriously burnt in Sunningdale on Saturday night.

The men appeared to be Good Samaritans in the first place before turning nasty after realising that it was petrol.

The injured are battling for their lives at Harare Central and Parirenyatwa hospitals while several others are suspected to have been burnt to ashes.

The Herald yesterday caught up with the truck driver Mr Hamphrey Muza (38) at his Chitungwiza house where he is recovering after suffering two broken ribs and internal injuries.

He narrated how it all started.

"On that Saturday, I was phoned to report for duty and load 35 000 litres of petrol at Noczim, which I did.

"Since it was around 5:30pm, I saw it not wise to travel to my destination, Norton and I decided to go to our company workshop and I used the Mbare route to avoid congestion," Mr Muza said.

On approaching the intersection of Boshoff Drive and 2nd Street in Sunningdale, two private cars were waiting to turn to the left side.

"It seemed the cars intended to go in different directions, but to my surprise, the other car encroached into my lane and as I was trying to avoid it, it hit my right front tyre and it burst. I tried my best to control the truck and I landed in a ditch before the tanker overturned," he said.

Mr Muza said he was trapped for some minutes before he hit the windscreen to come out.

"About five men came rushing and they asked if there was anyone inside and I told them I was alone. Although I was in pain, I asked them to help me by stopping vehicles from both directions because I knew I was carrying a dangerous liquid, petrol.

"Once they learnt of this, those same guys are the ones who led the rush. From their actions, it showed that they had a good knowledge of fuel as they are the ones who opened the valves of the tanker," he said.

Muza said residents started rushing with buckets, in a scramble for the commodity, the moment they saw petrol gushing out.

"I ended up receiving threats but this did not stop me as I continued shouting to the people to stop. There were now more than 30 people collecting petrol with buckets and dishes, including kids.

"One man who identified himself as Jimalo arrived and offered me lift to hospital. But even before we left I told the man to help me in alerting the residents of the explosion. I took more than 40 minutes trying to stop the people, but we failed and I left for the Avenues Clinic since I was in pain."

He said he learnt about the explosion through his workmate whom he had informed of the accident. Muza said had the police reacted swiftly, it would have helped him in dispersing the crowd. However, Muza said he was now worried about his condition.

"The doctor told me that the two broken ribs were so sharp that they can pierce through my lungs," he said.

The incident has left Sunningdale residents in a state of shock.

Several families are still trying to locate their relatives amid fears that they could have died in the inferno. Police yesterday said there were no developments to the case.