Woman gives birth at Beitbridge Border Post
BEITBRIDGE – Business came to a standstill at Beitbridge Border Post when a Gweru woman went into labour and gave birth to a baby boy in a bus on the arrivals section on Sunday. The incident occurred at around 10pm.
Privilege Ruzengwe of Mkoba 14, Gweru, was on her way from Johannesburg, South Africa, where she had gone for shopping, aboard a Miles Coaches bus. She reportedly started experiencing labour pains and screamed, prompting women who were in the bus to sweep to her rescue.
The women reportedly formed a wall around Ruzengwe while one of them helped her deliver. Cross border buses going in or out of the country are cleared using the tagging system when they get to Beitbridge Border Post. These are cleared on first-come, first-served basis.
Men and other travellers jostled to witness the birth, but security officers at the border dispersed the crowd. Sources said Ruzengwe was taken to Beitbridge District Hospital for further management and was discharged at around midday yesterday.
“We were busy controlling the people in a queue and the movement of both human and vehicular traffic on the arrivals side when the woman started experiencing labour pains in a Miles Coaches bus.
“Some elderly women who were in the bus volunteered to help her deliver before we called in an ambulance,” said a security guard who witnessed the incident.
This comes a few months after another Beitbridge woman, identified only as Koketso, gave birth to a baby boy while standing in a queue on the arrivals side. Koketso was also on her way from Musina, South Africa, where she had reportedly gone shopping.
