Six schoolgirls died when a fire tore through a homestead in Chipinge on Saturday night, leaving investigators to establish what happened inside the home where the girls had been staying.
The blaze struck Pferedzai Homestead in Bamhamire Village, under Chief Mutema, in Manicaland Province. Police confirmed the deaths on Sunday and said they were investigating the circumstances. The girls were living at the home of a resident identified as Pferedzai. Their ages and the school they attended had not been released by Monday morning.
“The ZRP is investigating the circumstances which led to the death of six school girls at Pferedzai Homestead, Bamhamire Village, Chief Mutema, Chipinge after a fire incident during the night,” Zimbabwe Republic Police national spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said.
Police said further information would be made available. A gas explosion has been raised as a possible cause, but the police have not confirmed that account. The cause remains under investigation.
Images from the scene showed the remains of household belongings blackened by the fire. The roof had been consumed, and damaged sheets of corrugated metal hung at angles from the walls. The destruction left little visible of the home’s contents.
The deaths came amid a string of other fatal fires in Zimbabwe this year, including incidents involving children in homes and a fire aboard a commuter omnibus carrying school pupils.
In Mutare, Gift Chimbidzai, a 54-year-old father of four, died in the early hours of Tuesday, 3 November, after returning to a burning house in St Joseph’s Park, Chikanga 3. He had helped his wife and four children get out with the assistance of neighbours. He then went back inside, believing one of his daughters was still trapped. The fire intensified and the roof collapsed while he was inside.
Neighbour Nessia Taziva, one of the first residents to respond, said she and her husband had been woken by the fire. “My husband and I woke up around 2am after hearing windows shattering. When we looked outside, we saw our neighbour’s house engulfed in flames and rushed to help.
“We tried everything we could. Chimbidzai had already managed to help bring the children out of the house. Some neighbours even knocked down part of a wall so that the last child and Chimbidzai could escape. Unfortunately, the fire became too intense and the roof collapsed before he could come out. He died trying to save his family. He was a hero.”
Residents said they were frustrated by delays and the fire tender’s need to leave the scene to replenish its water. Taziva said: “We called the Fire Brigade seven or eight times. We even asked if we could use a hosepipe before firefighters arrived, but were told it would not help.
“People were angry because the fire truck kept going back and forth to collect water. A father has died and the whole community is grieving. More resources should have been deployed,” she said.
City of Mutare head of Emergency Services Lloyd Mujaho disputed claims that the response took more than an hour. He said the first distress call came at 1.55am and a fire tender reached the house at 2.05am. “It took us 10 minutes to reach the scene. Given that Chikanga is about seven to eight kilometres from the fire station, we consider that a reasonable response time,” he said.
Mujaho said the first tender carried 5,000 litres of water and returned twice to replenish its supply, bringing the total used to about 15,000 litres. He said the initial water supply was enough to contain the blaze, with further water used to extinguish it fully. The cause of the Mutare fire was still being investigated.
A month earlier, on Saturday, 17 October, a seven-year-old boy died in a house fire in Chinhoyi’s Orange Grove suburb. The fire broke out at about 10pm. A mosquito coil was suspected of starting the blaze. The boy, identified as Mike, died as the fire engulfed the home. The details released publicly did not establish the full sequence of events inside the house.
In August, a nine-year-old Grade 4 learner, Ashley, died after a gas tank burst and a fire spread through her family’s two-room house in Glen Norah A, Harare. She had been inside with a sibling at about 7pm on Saturday, 15 August, while her mother and other people were outside. The sibling escaped. Ashley suffered severe burns and died in hospital the following morning.
Earlier, on 26 April, two children aged 11 and six died in a fire at a homestead near Mukumbura Border Post in Mashonaland Central. Police said a gas cylinder exploded at the property, where petrol and gas were being stored. The children were trapped in the blaze and died at the scene. Their father suffered severe burns and was taken to hospital. The property was reportedly being used as an informal fuel outlet. Environmental Management Agency provincial spokesperson Maxwell Mupotsa said: “The storage, sale or use of hazardous substances in large quantities should not be conducted at household level.”
The risks of carrying flammable fuel in vehicles were also in focus after a commuter omnibus caught fire in Gweru on 10 June. The vehicle was believed to have been carrying 24 schoolchildren when it caught fire at about 2.30pm near Chirandu Business Centre in Senga. Seven people died. Police said the number of injured people was still being verified and that preliminary investigations indicated the kombi may have been carrying a jerry can of petrol.
Nyathi said at the time: “The ZRP confirms a tragic incident in which a kombi believed to have been carrying 24 school children caught fire on June 10, 2026 at approximately 1430 hours at Chirandu Business Centre, Senga, Gweru.
“So far, seven people have been confirmed dead, while the number of injured persons is still being verified,” said Nyathi.
Police said they were investigating the circumstances of the Gweru fire. The cause of the Chipinge blaze has yet to be announced. For now, the confirmed facts are the location, the deaths of six schoolgirls and the police investigation underway at Pferedzai Homestead.