Zimbabwe went into lockdown at midnight Monday and by the end of the day, the country had generally heeded President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s call to close business, as a measure to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The following are reports from The Sunday Mail team, stationed in different locations across the capital.
Mtandazo Dube, in Central Harare, reports that most private hospitals in Harare were adhering to the Government directive to have one designated visitor once a day.
To de-congest the health institutions – hospitals went further and allocated visiting times for different hospital departments. For instance, paedriatic units receive visitors between 11am and 12pm while the visiting times for maternity wards are from 9am to 10am, with the visits ending at 2pm.
Wards at several health institutions have been heavily de-congested to create room only for critical patients and emergency situations.
In most areas near Harare’s central business district like Braeside, Queensdale, Hillside, Belvedere, the Avenues and even the notorious Matapi Flats in Mbare, people heeded the call to “stay home”.
Mixed groups of municipal police officers and the Zimbabwe Republic Police patrolled these places. Supermarkets and liquor stores shut their doors promptly at 3pm in most of the aforementioned areas.
