Panic over polluted water in Gwanda

Residents of Gwanda have resorted to buying bottled water following reports that the town's water is polluted with cyanide and magnesium. 
Most residents who spoke to reporters yesterday said the water had always been "dirty and smelly" and they were now afraid to drink it, after learning it had dangerous chemicals.
However, other residents said they had never had problems with the water and only started getting worried when they read Press reports about the cyanide.
Councillors in the town yesterday distributed 20 litre buckets and water purification sachets to residents in a bid to combat water-borne diseases.
"The water has always been dirty. Last month water coming from my tap was mixed with raw sewage. It had newspapers and other solid deposits, whose origins I was afraid to investigate. The town is short-changing us," said a resident from the town's central business district who declined to be named.
Another resident said she had stopped using tap water because if cyanide levels in water are not enough to kill a person instantly, they can have side effects in the long term.
"My friends and I now prefer to buy mineral water. I read that our water has about 0.03 percent cyanide content. If this does not kill a person instantly, it can cause an early onset of Alzheimer's disease. It can also cause people to give birth to severely deformed children, with no limbs," said Mrs Menzi Dube, a nurse from the affluent Hampden Plots.
She expressed concern that if all the residents of Gwanda were to start buying mineral water, it would create a shortage because few shops in the town were selling it.
A resident of Pelandaba Township, Mrs Nomathemba Maplanka, said: "Our councillor in ward 7, Councillor Thoko Sibanda, distributed 20 litre buckets and water purification sachets to people in the ward today. She told us that the water has been tested and found safe and we would only use the purifier in cases of emergency."
But some residents said they had never seen anything wrong with the water, but were taken aback when they read the issue in the Press.
"The mayor (Clr Lionel De Necker) has scared us with his revelations. We are now afraid to drink tap water because we have been told cyanide and magnesium are among the deadliest poisons on earth. All along we have been drinking the water without problems," said Mr Boas Masimba of Jahunda township. Residents demanded a meeting with council officials to get the true story about the water.
"They should address us and tell us what is really happening. We are getting conflicting statements from them. The mayor said the water was polluted and now councillors are saying it is safe. If it does not contain poison, why are they giving us sachets to purify it?" asked a resident of Jahunda Township.
A comment could not be obtained from the town clerk, Mr Gilbert Mlilo, because he was said to be on leave.
Clr De Necker was also said to be out of office and could not be reached on his cellphone.Gwanda Town Council has been trying to wrest supply of water to the town from Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) for some years.
They have accused the authority of failing to supply residents with clean and safe water.At the weekend, Clr De Necker was quoted as saying the Matabeleland South provincial capital was being supplied with dirty water by Zinwa.
He said the water contained dangerous toxins that were harmful to people and the environment.However, Water Resources Management and Development Minister Samuel Sipepa Nkomo, in turn advised Clr De Necker to "cool off".
Minister Nkomo said there was no way the Government would deliberately kill its people by giving them unsafe water.