A 16-year-old girl was fatally crushed by tractor trolleys while she was picking tobacco at Willmode Farm in Mvurwi, raising calls to stop children from working on farms.

The tragedy happened on December 29 last year when Faith Maurukira, who was employed as a general worker, fell from the tractor before being run over.

A witness, who is also the farm manager Mr Zvinashe Guyo, confirmed the death.

“The girl went to the field in the morning with others as usual and her task was to follow behind the tractor trolleys and pick those leaves that would have fallen from the moving tractor en-route to the barns,” he said.

“At that time, I was in the next field from which the girl was coming.

On her way, the girl boarded one of the trolleys, but after moving for a few metres, she called on the driver to slow down so that she could pick the tobacco leaves that had fallen.

“The driver could not hear her and she then jumped from the trolleys and was hit by an axle at the back.”
Faith died on the spot.

Efforts to get a comment from Mashonaland Central Provincial police spokesperson Inspector Milton Mundembe were fruitless.

Faith’s aunt, Happiness Gavhiyo, said when they arrived at the scene, the girl was bleeding profusely.

“We received a message that Faith had fallen from a tractor and upon arrival, she was already dead with both her hands broken and bleeding from the mouth, nose and ears,” she said.-State media