Scania truck drowns, van wheels vanish

For them, the different types they see from one place to another, the varying types of grass and shrubs tinged here and there with beautiful wild flowers and the expanse of natural vegetation that may extend to as far as the eye can see, are what matter most.

Sometimes working in the rural areas may result in nasty experiences. In one of those travels, three people had to spend a night in the heart of forest in Kilwa district because their vehicle had lost two spare tyres through punctures in the early hours of the night and there was no way they could be rescued.

In another instance, a driver lost his way, took the wrong tack (sometimes there are no roads) and got stuck in the mud.

In an attempt to push the vehicle out, something went wrong and the Toyota Lang cruiser lay flat on its chassis, with all the tyres sunk into the mud. Well, that was tricky and frustrating! It was close to dusk and it would soon be dark, when there would be no hope for assistance. Luckily there is always a secret hand to get us out of problems. A group of people in a Toyota Land Cruiser heading in the same direction, but on the right track, came to our aid. The vehicle was pulled out of the mud and continued its journey in the night as it started to rain heavily.

But what happened at Nakiu River in Kilwa district recently made me have second thoughts about indulging in adventures related to the natural environment. It is okay to fool around with natural vegetation and, to some extent, with wild animals, but not with water.

Nakiu is a big river. I t is wide and has strong currents though the water level is low. Even when it is just one foot deep, a river could be quite dangerous to cross on a vehicle.

Another thing about the river is that the amount of water and its depth change depending on circumstances upstream. If it rains heavily then the river becomes full of water and may even cause floods. But the floods subside as soon as it stops raining.

On the other hand, if it doesn’t rain upstream, the river becomes shallow and people can drive from either side without any problem. But there is another trick besides the unpredictable depth of the river: the bed is all sandy. Drivers have thus to be careful even when the river it shallow.

If they are not washed away by water then they can get stuck in the sand.
That is what happened recently when in the company of my colleagues we decided to drive across the river. It took a long discussion among ourselves and consultations with Nanjirinji village government leaders before we agreed that we could drive across the river.

A couple of Noah vans had arrived in the village from the other side, which means they had crossed the river. We were also encouraged by the fact that we were travelling a Toyota Land Cruiser which is one of the best off-road vehicles.
Every one of us got somehow scared of what we saw at the river.

Two lorries, all loaded with timber, had crossed to our side. Another lorry had got stuck in the sand close to the back and some young men were off loading timber from it to make it light so that it could be pulled out.

Just behind this, a Scania truck loaded with timber also got stuck. However it could not be pulled out because the one in front had to go out first. Then there was a van that was on its belly after having lost all the wheels. No one could tell us exactly what had happened to the van. It was late in the evening and it was not safe to leave the vehicles in the water overnight.We were lucky to drive across the river safe and sped our way to Ruangwa.

News came in the morning that the Scania truck could not be pulled out the previous evening. It had rained heavily upstream during the night and Nakiu was swollen with water. The Scania lorry and its contents had been swallowed by the river and people could not tell whether it was washed downstream or it was still at the crossing point.

What a loss!
Having visited several villages in Rufiji, Kilwa, Ruangwa, Nachingwea, and Masasi districts, we realized that community members have changed their mindset regarding forests and other natural resources. Now they know the value of forests and are ready to protect them at any cost.

By trading in forest products from village land forest reserves, communities are able to build classrooms, buy uniforms for pupils and provide them with lunch. Others have gone further and pay for health insurance for the elderly and provide women with money when they become pregnant.

“It is different now,” said one of my colleagues. “Gone are the days when Mavuji, Migeregere and other villages could be lured to sell their land and all forests on it, to dubious investors. If such investors came back today, they would be chased away by villagers.”

But we learned something else; outside village land forest reserves, illegal logging was rampant. District councils and the Tanzania Forests Services Agency (TFS) are doing little to protect the forests. They are also not ready to turn these into village forest reserves may be for their own benefit.

There are arguments that forests are the main sources of revenue for district councils so they cannot hand them over to village governments. That is fair enough, but if indeed these forests are their “cash cows” then they should conserve and protect them in order to continue enjoying the benefits.

And communities are not happy with either district councils of TFS. “Our poverty is to a great extent due to the district council and TFS. Officials are bent on making money and not empowering villagers to manage forest so as to reduce poverty among communities,” says Salum Shomari, Mbangala Ward Executive Officer in Masasi District.

There is something else which communities are not happy about: TFS is also curving out forests which they want to own and manage and so compete with villagers who have village land forest reserves and trade in forest products.

“One of our responsibilities is to work with district councils and village governments to conserve and protect forests,” says Boaz Sanga, Deputy TFS Manager for Southern Zone.

The ambitious move by TFS to own and manage forests and so engage in trade of forest products could lead to something else, given the current awareness and the success village governments have recorded in managing forests, they are going to take over all forests owned by TFS.