By Lovemore Masunungure
MARONDERA — Renowned philanthropist Sir Wicknell Chivayo, his wife, an aide and two pilots died yesterday in a horror crash that has shocked not just Zimbabwe but the whole world.
The crash, which occurred near a dam at Kudenga Farm, about 60km south-east of Harare, has been described by many as devastating.
The reported weather conditions are among the circumstances being considered as authorities seek to establish what caused the accident.
“We heard the sound of a chopper. It turned over towards the worst and we heard a sound. That is when we rushed to the farm supervisor. When we came, we saw the helicopter had crashed here, burning, and bodies were all over. No one was alive,” said a farm employee.
The scene itself said everything.
The chopper was broken into pieces, debris was everywhere and there were body parts scattered around the crash site.
Chivayo himself was badly burnt, and his body was difficult to recognise.
His younger brother, uncles and other relatives had to use features on his left hand to identify him.
“Yes, this is him. Indeed, look at his hand,” they said amongst themselves.
The other hand was collected about 50 metres from the rest of his body and was also badly burnt.
The bodies of Sir Wicknell’s wife, Lucy Muteke, and her aide, Sanelisiwe Magagula, were about 80 metres away and were close to each other.
They were not burnt to the same extent.
They were both easily identifiable by their clothes, which were unique and expensive, although soiled with blood and debris from the crash.
The bodies of the two pilots were in the middle distance between Sir Wicknell and his wife.
Calvin Tafirei Soda and his co-pilot, Courage Mutavirwa, were also badly burnt.
The grieving family members, police, forensic experts and Doves staff had a busy day recovering remains from the crash site.
It will not be easy to match the recovered human remains to the correct identities without forensic expertise.
As authorities seek answers on the cause of the crash, the nation is standing together to mourn a man who had transformed the art of giving, despite concerns surrounding how he accumulated his wealth.
Meanwhile, everyone is waiting to hear when he will be buried at the National Heroes Acre or in Gandami.
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