Zimbabwe capital city shuts main water plant, shortages loom

FILE PHOTO: People queue to collect water from a solar powered borehole as the country faces electricity and water outages in Harare, Zimbabwe, September 12, 2019. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo/File Photo

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's capital shut its main water works on Monday citing shortages of foreign currency to import treatment chemicals, the deputy mayor said, potentially leaving the city dry and raising the risk of water borne diseases like cholera.

Last year, the southern African nation suffered its worst cholera outbreak in a decade, which killed at least 26 people mainly in Harare, due to burst sewers and inadequate water supplies.