A cholera outbreak that has killed at least 28 people in just 11 days and put almost 4,000 people in hospital has become a nightmare for the newly sworn-in government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
The health crisis is taking the shine off Mnangagwa's push to fix the economy and attract investment as the extent of collapse of the country's health system is laid bare.
The epicentre of the epidemic has been in the Harare townships of Glen View and Budiriro. Authorities in Bulawayo on Friday reported they were monitoring new cases, and a typhoid outbreak has been raging in Gweru since last month.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) expressed concern that the cholera bacteria were resistant to "first-line" medicine, raising the spectre that the outbreak could persist for several weeks.
"Relevant medicines should be purchased as a matter of urgency as soon as resistance patterns have been ascertained," a WHO statement said. International aid agencies are helping relief efforts, providing medicine, volunteer services and clean water for affected communities.
Finance minister Mthuli Ncube said on Thursday his ministry, in co-operation with the health ministry, was using crowdfunding to raise money for the anti-cholera effort.
"Together we can win," he said.
Vimbai Tsvangirai, the MP for Glen View South, said on Friday there had been two deaths in her constituency and residents were flocking to clinics for health checks.
CONTAMINATED GROUND WATER
"The unfortunate thing is that we have broken-down boreholes, as such water supply is critical. We appeal to companies and businesses operating in the area and beyond to assist us," she said.
This week, the government gave $1m to the Harare city council for relief efforts. Other donations include $100,000 from the president's fund, $10m from Econet Wireless, $250,000 from the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society and a 3.5t truck from Quest Motors.
The cholera outbreak, first reported on September 5, comes 10 years after the last major cholera epidemic in which 4,000 people died and 8,500 cases were reported weekly. Failure to curb the spread of the disease in 2008 resulted in it spreading to neighbouring countries.
Owen Mhlanga, a resident of Mkoba in Gweru, said on Friday he was lucky to be alive after drinking contaminated borehole water.
"I drank water that had been sourced from a borehole," Mhlanga said.
"Our area has been relying on borehole water for more than 10 years. The water has had a pungent smell of late, but I did not pay attention to that detail.
"I felt pain in my abdomen and by the time I went to sleep about seven hours after drinking the water, I was passing watery stools and suddenly my temperature was up," he said.
Mhlanga blames the local authority because the borehole, which serves close to 50 households, was condemned by the health ministry after salmonella bacteria was detected in the water.
"Our borehole was drilled about 30m away from a sewer line which bursts from time to time and is hardly attended to," Mhlanga said.
The government has declared a state of emergency to deal with the epidemic.
A graduation ceremony scheduled for Friday at the University of Zimbabwe in Harare was cancelled as health officials urged the public to avoid large gatherings and follow proper hygiene.
The epidemic has resulted in a war of words between the ruling Zanu-PF and the opposition MDC, which controls 26 urban centres. Zanu-PF has accused the MDC of failing to provide adequate services such as sanitation and water supply.
Deputy information minister Energy Mutodi said the MDC-run councils were asleep at the wheel.
GOING BACKWARDS
In turn, MDC leader Nelson Chamisa said the cholera outbreak marked a return to a dark past for Zimbabwe.
"The country is moving backward because cholera and typhoid are diseases of the past," he said.
Because of the state of emergency, the MDC had to postpone its 19th anniversary celebrations scheduled to take place yesterday at Gwanzura Stadium in Harare.
Chamisa had intended to hold a mock inauguration at the event to highlight his refusal to accept the outcome of the July 30 election.
Health minister Obadiah Moyo said the cholera outbreak was linked to contaminated borehole sources, and schools in the affected areas have had to be temporarily closed.
The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights said the major cause of cholera, an "ancient and easily avoidable menace", was dilapidated infrastructure.
"We have been seeing all year round, broken-down sewer pipes, sewerage all over the place," said spokesperson Norman Matara.
"Even the piped water, you would see dirty water coming out of the taps. We were breeding cholera all along, we knew we were sitting on a time bomb; soon we were going to have cholera but nothing was done."
In Bulawayo, three people have been admitted to Thorngrove Isolation Hospital for assessment.
Nesisa Mpofu, the Bulawayo city council's senior public relations officer, said the city was on "high alert" as it monitored water quality to ensure it was safe for drinking.
"In the event of a communicable disease case such as cholera or typhoid, we have a hospital ward set aside at the infectious diseases hospital in Thorngrove," Mpofu said.
"To also prepare for such emergencies, the city crafted an emergency preparedness and response plan.
"In cases of diarrhoea or suspected typhoid or cholera, patients are encouraged to visit their nearest health facility and all private practitioners must report any such case to the city health department."
Mandla Zwane, director for communicable disease control at the Mpumalanga health department in SA, said given the high numbers of people moving between Zimbabwe and SA, the province's health officials had been placed on high alert with their outbreak response teams on standby...