A critical shortage of water and mealie meal has hit Itezhi-Tezhi district following a four day power outage in the entire district.
The power outage began on Wednesday this week and has persisted to date.
And the transport system within the district has been paralyzed due to the shortage of fuel that has been triggered by lack of electricity.
Acting Itezhi-Tezhi District Commissioner Hampende Hichilema confirmed this to ZANIS today and said Itezhi-Tezhi plunged into darkness on Wednesday, resulting into a critical shortage of water and mealie meal.
“The district was plunged into darkness on Wednesday, resulting in a critical shortage of essential commodities such mealie meal, fuel, bread and water. Operations at Itezhi-Tezhi milling and Mellissa bakery have also been grounded”, he said.
Mr Hichilema noted that some people have resorted to drawing water from the crocodile infested Itezhi-Tezhi lake and Kafue river in a desperate attempt to live normally.
He said the lack of electricity in the entire district has also paralyzed the movement of vehicles around the district.
He lamented that a number of government functions and trips that were scheduled for this week have been cancelled or rescheduled due to the continued power outage in the district.
Mr Hichilema said most food stuffs in fridges have since started rotting due to lack of electricity for the past four days.
The government official further said operations at the district hospital, especially the mortuary, have also been negatively affected.
He said that the power outage may compel the district health authorities to close down the mortuary if it persists.
Mr Hichilema explained that ZESCO has attributed the power failure to a fault at Munzuma substation power station along Kafue Gorge which has affected Choma, Namwala and Itezhi-Tezhi districts
Most residents have expressed anger at what they called “ZESCO’s snail pace” in rectifying the fault.
Meanwhile, illegal fuel vending has increased in the district because the ZESCO service station was not operational.
Mr. Hichilema said the trend is posing a serious danger to human life since illegal fuel vendors do not follow adhere to safety standards.
ZANIS
This is terrible. ZESCO seems to be overstretched in their capacity as the sole electricity supplier of the country. This only confirms the huge potential for investment and competition in the sector. Solar energy is one alternative.
This is a picture of the whole Zambia, It is a country not prepared for a disaster of any kind, floods or cholera outbreak the list is endless