By Victoria Yande
Four boys have been burnt to death by wildfire at Kanjuchi when they allegedly went for hunting in Mbulumbudzu hills in the northern district of Mzimba in Malawi.
The children died of severe burnt wounds- Mseteka PIC Jenda Police
The boys have been identified as Shaban Nkhoma 11, James Mbewe 15, Denis Mbewe 11 and Misheck Lingison 13.
According to Jenda police spokesperson, MacFarlane Mseteka said the deceased went missing on September 18, 2024, after knocking off from school and the parent thought they had gone for hunting as they usually do but the search was instituted after the children did not report back home that evening.
Mseteka said upon resuming the search the following day on September 19, 2024, later in the evening, the boys were found dead in Mbulumbudzi hills burnt by wildfire together with their dog.
"The parents reported at Jenda Police station about the matter who visited the scene together with medical personnel from Nkoma health centre.
“Postmortem conducted by the medical personnel on the four bodies indicated that they had severe burnt wounds as the cause of death secondary to wildfire,” said Mseteka.
Preliminary investigations suggest that the fire could have been started by the boys themselves which surrounded them and failed to escape as it is a norm in hunting, however investigations are under way to ascertain the claims.
He said of the four boys, the three were from the same parent, Goodson Nkhoma but one, Misheck Lingson a son to his tenant Maxwell Lingson all from Njilika Village, Traditional Authority Mabulabo in Mzimba district.
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