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Most dams in the Midlands province are already spilling raising fears of flooding in most areas. Authorities in Gweru, Kwekwe and Redcliff have already raised alarm and warned residents to be on alert for possible flooding.

Gweru City Council has gone a step further and set up temporary shelters where residents can be moved to in the event of flooding.

The council has identified community halls, closed beerhalls, schools and Senga Training Centre as temporary shelters to accommodate affected residents.

The suburbs under threat from flooding are Mkoba Village 4, Mtapa, Nashville, Riverside, Woodlands and Ascot Extension.

Kwekwe council has also warned residents to be on alert as its big supply dam, Sebakwe, is already full and other dams in the surrounding areas are fast filling up.

The acting Kwekwe Civil Protection Unit chairperson Mr Clemence Muduma said the threat of flash floods is real as many dams are now full.

He urged those residing close to river banks to constantly monitor the water levels and quickly move to safe areas in the event of flooding.

The Redcliff Town Clerk Mr Gilson Chakauya has also advised communities residing within 1 100 metres from Kwekwe River and Cactus Dam to immediately move to safe areas.

The Meteorological Services Department (MSD) has predicted heavy destructive rains in the next few days and as such the threats of flooding especially in the Midlands province is real.

Residents in the different cities and towns in the province should be on alert and should not wait to be evacuated once they realise their places are under threat from floods.

We want to also implore authorities in other towns and cities to prepare for possible flooding as what has happened in Gweru where residents now know where to move in the event of floods.

The CPU has said the $100 million that Government released to assist in mitigating the impact of Cyclone Chalene will be used to fund evacuations and other operations in the event of flooding.

We want at this juncture to urge the CPU to ensure it puts systems in place to enable its structures at the different levels to quickly access the funding in the event of flooding.