By Daily Times Reporter
HARARE, Zimbabwe — Zimbabwean businessman Wicknell Chivhayo and five other people were killed when a helicopter crashed in Marondera Rural, about 70 kilometres east of the capital, Harare, authorities said.
The helicopter crashed at around 5 p.m. on Wednesday, September 30, with six people on board, including Chivhayo, his wife and two pilots. There were no survivors.
Zimbabwean police confirmed that an aircraft had crashed in the Marondera area and said emergency teams had been deployed to the scene.
Government spokesperson Nick Mangwana later confirmed that the aircraft was carrying a high-profile businessman, four passengers and two pilots, and that all those on board had died.
“The Government wishes to confirm that a helicopter crash has occurred, involving one high-profile businessman, four passengers, and two pilots,” Mangwana said.
“Current information indicates that there were no survivors in this crash,” he added.
Chivhayo was a prominent Zimbabwean businessman who had gained widespread public attention through his business activities and high-profile philanthropy.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known. Investigators and emergency teams were working at the crash site, while authorities were expected to provide further details on the identities of all those killed and the circumstances surrounding the accident.
The crash is one of the country’s latest fatal aviation incidents and has drawn widespread attention because of Chivhayo’s prominence in Zimbabwean public life.
