Victoria Falls Tourist Accident

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Roy George Tinashe Dikinya with his girlfriend Mazwi Shamu at Victoria Falls on New Year's Day.

The Victoria Falls Tourist Accident occurred on 1 January 2021. A 40-year-old Harare man fell into a gorge at the Victoria Falls Rainforest from one of the viewing points.

Victim

The man was identified as Roy Dikinya.[1]

Details

Dikinya slipped at Danger Point while taking selfies with his smartphone.

Dikinya's body parts were found trapped between the rocks down the Danger Point gorge. The body was retrieved following a six-hour operation. The smartphone was also recovered from the gorge but with a damaged LCD.

After struggling to recover the body parts which were trapped at the foot of the gorge, the rescue team managed to execute one of the most difficult and dangerous rescue missions ever witnessed in the resort town.

Three kayakers led by filmmaker Tom Vary managed to paddle to the exact spot where Dikinya’s body parts were initially discovered.

Other rescue team members had mounted zip lines as they worked as a unit. The remains of the Victoria Falls tourist had been swept away by the water and the rescue team members only managed to recover his smartphone.

Roy Dikinya's body parts were later discovered downstream floating around the eddy just after rapid four.

The rescue team had to lower down an inflatable boat down the gorge which was used to ferry Dikinya’s remains from the eddy to the point where it was pulled up the gorge using the gorge swing ropes.

A joint effort by the police and its sub-aqua team, Zimparks rangers, Mine Rescue Association representatives, Victoria Falls tourism players and the members of the Zimbabwe Rafting Association successfully executed the mission to retrieve some of Dikinya's body parts.[2]

Zimparks spokesman Tinashe Farawo said that people have drowned at the site before, but this was the first time someone had fallen into the gorge.[3]

Burial

Dikinya was buried on 10 January 2021 at Glen Forest Cemetery in Harare with Dr John Mangwiro, among those who attended the burial ceremony.[4]

References

  1. Patrick Chitumba,Victoria Falls accident: Man’s body parts found downstream, The Chronicle, Published: January 4, 2021, Retrieved: January 13, 2021
  2. Dismembered Remains Of Tourist Who Fell Down Victoria Falls Gorge Retrieved, NewZimbabwe.com, Published: January 6, 2021, Retrieved: January 12, 2021
  3. Eoin McSweeney, Body of man who fell into Victoria Falls in New Year's Day tragedy retrieved, CNN, Published: January 7, 2021, Retrieved: January 13, 2021
  4. Vic Falls tourist buried, The Sunday Mail, Published: January 10, 2021, Retrieved: January 13, 2021

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