BREAKING: Cable theft cuts off Mpilo Hospital from national grid

Raymond Jaravaza, Zimpapers Reporter

MPILO Central Hospital, in Bulawayo, the second biggest referral hospital in the country, was hit by a fresh wave of electricity cable theft that cut off the health institution off the national grid for several hours while Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) employees worked tirelessly to restore power.

The criminals cut off a cable from the main ZESA line that feeds power into Mpilo Hospital around 12 midnight on Tuesday, briefly plunging the hospital into darkness.

Power was restored when diesel powered generators were switched on.

No casualties were recorded as a result of the brief power disturbance. Mpilo Hospital chief executive officer Professor Solwayo Ngwenya is worried about the threat to human life that the vandalism of power infrastructure poses to patients.

“These heinous acts of vandalism and theft put the lives of patients in theatre as well as babies on specialised breathing machines at risk. Mpilo Hospital has security teams that patrol the hospital but the cable theft happened outside our perimeter fence. The money we use to buy diesel for the generators could be better spent on medicines and other critical requirements for the hospital,” said Prof. Ngwenya.

A Zimpapers news crew on Wednesday observed that about six metres of cable that connect the hospital from a ZESA power line had been stripped. The vandalised cable triggered a veld fire that burnt grass around the area.

The latest cable theft incident is the third in less than a year and a half following previous incidents when criminals have taken electricity infrastructure has been targeted at the hospital.