WINDHOEK – The Murangi family was left homeless after a fire razed their 14-room farm house to the ground completely on the first day of the new year.
The 71-year old Benjamin Murangi and his extended family lost almost everything in the fire, including expensive farming equipment, clothes, national documents, as well as the title deed to the farm. The family estimates the total damage, in monetary terms, to be in the region of N$2.2 million. Their farm,
Vasbyt, is situated about 100 kilometres east of Gobabis in the Omaheke Region.
Luckily no one was inside the house when the fire broke out. The family was headed for Epukiro to visit other relatives on New Year’s Day when they received a call about the fire.
They turned around to rush to the house, but unfortunately they reached the house too late to be able to extinguish the fire or to salvage anything from the house. Murangi is a liberation struggle veteran and a well-known farmer and former businessman in the region.
Speaking to New Era yesterday, family spokesperson Ueripura Murangi, who is the elder Murangi’s son, said the fire started around 2 o’clock on new year’s day while the family was out.
Murangi said when they returned to the house, they tried in vain to extinguish the fire, using buckets of water, but their efforts proved futile.
“According to eyewitnesses [it first started with] a lot of smoke. The house was filled with thick smoke and they could not see anything. [They say] the gas stoves went off like bombs and that is when they decided to [investigate and try to] help out,” he said.
“We all lost everything, a life that we all worked hard for. It is very sad and heart-rending that we had to go through all of this. We will have to start from the beginning, [as well as to apply] for new IDs, new birth and marriage certificates. We will have to start all over,” said Murangi. Okorukambe constituency councillor Kilus Nguvauva said during his 12 year stint as the constituency councillor he has never witnessed such a disaster.
“This family has lost everything, I mean everything. I therefore appeal to neighbours, family members and welfare organisations or any other relevant organisation to come to their rescue,” he said.
Nguvauva who is also the Deputy Minister of Works and Transport said he is preparing letters to the office of the governor and all stakeholders in the area to come to the assistance of the family.
By Kuzeeko Tjitemisa