Driver arrested over Toyota Noah accident that claimed 8 lives in Hwange

The driver of a Toyota Noah involved in a crash that killed eight people in Hwange on Saturday morning has been arrested.

Fanuel Mathe was behind the wheel of the vehicle, which was carrying 13 people, when the accident occurred. Police initially identified it as a kombi in a brief statement on Saturday, but it has since emerged that it was a Toyota Noah.

According to police, eight Roman Catholic Church members died when the Toyota Noah fell off the Deka River Bridge and plunged into the water below near Hwange.

The victims were returning from night prayers at St John’s Makwa Mission when the vehicle struck the bridge’s concrete barriers and toppled over.

Zimbabwe Republic Police Matabeleland North Province Officer Commanding, Commissioner Steven Kazingizi, said Mathe has been charged with culpable homicide and is being held at Hwange Police Station.

Meanwhile, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hwange has announced three days of formal mourning, from today until Wednesday.

In a condolence notice to the Church, the Bishop of Hwange, Father Raphael Ncube, said the group was returning from a Charismatic Renewal prayer gathering at St John’s Mission in Makwa.

“I hereby announce to all of us in the whole Diocese to observe three days of mourning as a Diocese, that is: Monday, 25 May. Tuesday, 26 May and Wednesday, 27 May 2026. I ask that all Masses in these three days be Masses for these deceased brothers and sisters.

“I ask those priests who might be celebrating Gregorian Masses to offer each of these days an additional Mass at their convenient time for these brothers and sisters during these three days of mourning. This also includes all the priests of Hwange who are outside the Diocese,” reads the notice. *_-Pindula_*