Woman dies in cash queue

A woman died over the weekend after enduring long hours in a queue to withdraw $40 from a bank at Joina City in the Harare central business district.

She was in the company of her minor child and had come from Murehwa.

According to witnesses, the woman (name withheld) started feeling sick after withdrawing the money.

"The lady began to vomit profusely. She was accompanied to the ladies toilet but people noticed that she was not getting better. An ambulance was called in but as soon as it arrived, she died," said the witness who preferred anonymity.

Another witness said the deceased was visibly sick when she was waiting in the queue.

"She then told people who were around to call her daughter-in-law in Mabvuku. But before the ambulance could take her to hospital she passed away," said another witness.

Police spokesperson Paul Nyathi said he was unaware of the incident and referred to one assistant inspector Dube who said she was on leave.

This comes as Zimbabweans have to endure countless hours in long cash queues, as the country's cash crisis deepens.

The problem has worsened in recent weeks, with desperate depositors sleeping over at banks waiting to withdraw cash the following day.