Zambia World Wide

When I was almost at the mill timber yard, I heard a great many shots going off at the house, and I thought that they were shooting at those I had left behind, but I still couldn’t believe that they were dead. I ran on zigzagging backwards and forwards between the high stacks of cut timber, and then up the path towards the store. There was no-one there so I crossed the road and into the compound. I ran to the second house where Chanda John lived, and hammered on the door calling him all the time. The door was finally opened by a young boy who told me Chanda wasn’t there, so I ran to the next house and women and some children came out. I said “Please get all the people together, five Congolese have attacked us, and they all have guns with them. Both Bwanas have been tied up and I think that Bwana Jack is dead and all my children” The woman took me inside and I sat down as I was exhausted. She wanted to wash my face, but I wouldn’t let her instead I asked for water. I remember a young girl bringing me a mug of water and while I was gulping it down the thought passed through my mind that if it wasn’t boiled I might get Bilhasia!  then saw a group of woman coming in and I ran out of the front door and around to the back of the hut, there I fell down and lent against the wall and I said to the woman “Please don’t let them know I am here, I’m the only one left alive and only I can identify the men”.

By now the whole compound was roused and I then ran into the middle of the football field and shouted as loud as I could to the people “ Everybody come and bring Pangas, choppers and knives, some Congolese have attacked us and they have killed Mr. & Mrs Engelbrecht and my husband and children. The men ran into their houses and came out carrying all sorts of weapons and they began to move up the road. I ran after them and said “I must go back with you”. I was walking ahead of them and suddenly I found myself alone again on the road and I didn’t know where the people had gone, so I ran back past the store and across a path into the burnt bush. I thought I saw a glare in the sky and I thought they had fired my house, but it was only the electric lights shining.

When I was almost at the house I saw car lights coming down the road, and in my confusion I thought it was the bandits looking for me so I hid behind a big tree. Then I heard six shots going off, a slight pause and then six more. I thought then that this really was the bandits finishing off all my family and the Engelbrechts- two shots for each of them. I knew then I had to go back and try and find the keys for Mr. Engelbrechts lorry and take all of them into Kitwe to the hospital.

I was still alone so I carried on to the house and crawled on my stomach across the path and under the big lounge windows. On peered between the gap in the curtains and into the room. I saw Allan still sitting with Marianne on his lap, and she appeared to be praying, but Allan was just staring into space.

I couldn’t see Jack at all, but lying in the middle of the room was Mrs. Engelbrecht and Lyndy with their legs tied at the ankles and their arms tied behind their backs, lying right up close to Lyndy was Mitzi , one of the Engelbrechts dogs. I scratched the window to attract Allan’s attention and he looked up, saw me at the window, put his fingers to his lips, shook his head and motioned me away with his hand, so I knew the bandits were still in the house. I then crawled across the lawn and down to the river bank and along until I found a tree stump I could hide behind and keep watch on the house until they had gone.