RioZim Plane Crash Victims Cremated
The remains of the six people, including four foreigners, who died on 29 September when their light aircraft crashed in the Zvemahande area about 6km northwest of Mashava have been released for burial or cremation, reported The Herald.
DNA tests and forensic examinations of the remains were conducted on Thursday last week.
Police identified the victims as Indian billionaire Harpla Singh Randhawa (60) of Murowa Diamonds, his son Amer Singh Randhawa, George Sibanda (51) of Murowa Diamonds, Nikhil Mahadik Milind of Murowa Diamonds, Reginald Muchemwa (38) who was the pilot and Pichumoney Viswanath (58) of RioZim Limited.
Of the six victims, the remains of the four foreign nationals were cremated on 06 October, while Sibanda was set to be buried in South Africa where his family lives and Muchemwa in Zimbabwe.
The Cessna plane, owned by Rio Zimbabwe Company, crashed at Peter Farm in the Zvamahande area of Mashava on a flight from Harare to Zvishavane.
The light aircraft is suspected to have developed a technical problem before crashing around 8 AM killing all passengers and crew on board.
In a statement issued after the fatal crash, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development said:
On 29 September 2023, the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport (RGMIA) Flight Information Centre (FIC) advised that they lost contact with a Zimbabwean-registered Cessna C206 aircraft registration No. Z-CAM.
The aircraft got airborne from RGMIA at 06:30 a.m. Zimbabwe time, flying to Murowa (near Zvishavane) with 6 people on board. The last contact with the aircraft was at 07:03 am Zimbabwe time.
The FIC had checked with destination and was told that the aircraft had not arrived. The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) confirms the aircraft accident, and 6 fatalities of the occupants on board the aircraft about 6 km to the North West of Mashava…
The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development – Air Accidents and Serious Incidents Investigation Department is carrying out investigations to establish the cause(s) and contributing factors regarding the accident in order to draw investigation conclusions and propose appropriate Safety Recommendations for the prevention of future accidents from similar causes.
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