Two Children Drown In Rusape Two Weeks After Parents Divorce
An estranged couple from Odzi in Manicaland Province has tragically lost their two children, just two weeks after separating amidst allegations of infidelity.
According to The Manica Post, Talent Sandako, the mother, fled her abusive husband, Webster Tashaya, and moved to Rusape with their two children—nine-year-old Blessmore Sandako and seven-year-old Wayne Tashaya.
Sadly, the children drowned while swimming around 2 p.m. on Monday in the Magamba suburb of Rusape, after slipping away from their mother’s attention.
The siblings drowned in a deep pool of water that had been dug along a seasonal stream by water harvesters.
In an attempt to escape her difficult marriage, Sandako had sold two cattle to fund her fresh start.
Assistant Inspector Wiseman Chinyoka, the acting spokesperson for the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) in Manicaland, confirmed the tragic incident.
He said that the children were with their four-year-old sibling, Blessed. Wayne drowned first, and when Blessmore attempted to save him, he also tragically drowned. Said Chinyoka:
Blessed rushed to inform their mother, Ms Sandako. She informed her neighbours and rushed to the stream to retrieve the bodies from the water.
Police were informed and attended the scene. The bodies were conveyed to Rusape General Hospital awaiting post-mortem.
Blessmore and Wayne were students at Gandidzanwa Primary School in Odzi, where Blessmore was in Grade Four and Wayne was in Grade One.
The two children had left their Odzi homestead with their mother, Talent Sandako, following a bitter fallout with their father, Webster Tashaya, on November 5.
The fallout allegedly occurred after Tashaya caught Sandako with a rival suitor in their marital bedroom.
However, sources close to the couple revealed that Tashaya had often physically abused Sandako without provocation, leading her to eventually leave him.
In a telephone interview with The Manica Post, Tashaya, Wayne’s father, expressed his devastation over the tragic loss of his son, which occurred just two weeks after his separation from Sandako. He said:
Technically, we are divorced after I caught her with another man in our bedroom on November 5. I wrestled with the man until she assisted him to escape. He left behind a jacket, one shoe, a cap and a cellphone.
We had two kids together, Wayne and Blessed. She had Blessmore, who died together with Wayne, with another man. She is my ex-wife and the mother of my children.
Tashaya also disputed claims that Sandako had ditched him because of his abusive and violent nature.
Meanwhile, Assistant Inspector Chinyoka urged parents and guardians to remain vigilant about the whereabouts of their children at all times.
He also advised those who cannot swim to avoid entering water bodies to prevent similar tragedies.
More: Pindula News
