Hwange

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title: "Hwange" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["hwange", "populated-places-in-zimbabwe"] topic_path: "general/hwange" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hwange" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

FieldValue
nameHwange
other_nameWankie
native_name
settlement_type
total_type
dot_x
pushpin_mapZimbabwe
pushpin_label_positionbottom
pushpin_mapsize200
subdivision_typeCountry
subdivision_nameZimbabwe
subdivision_type1Province
subdivision_name1Matabeleland North
subdivision_type2District
subdivision_name2Hwange District
subdivision_type3City
subdivision_name3Hwange Municipality
parts_style
parts
p2
leader_title1
unit_pref
area_total_km2
area_land_km2
elevation_footnotes
elevation_max_ft2530
population_as_of2022 census
population_footnotes
population_total21300
population_density_km2
timezoneCAT
utc_offset+2
coor_type
coordinates
postal_code_type
blank_nameClimate
blank_infoBSh
::

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Hwange, originally known as Wankie, is a town in Zimbabwe, located in Hwange District, in Matabeleland North Province, in northwestern Zimbabwe, close to the international borders with Botswana and Zambia. It lies approximately 100 km, by road, southeast of Victoria Falls, the nearest large city. The town lies on the railway line from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second-largest city, to Victoria Falls. Hwange sits at an elevation of 770 m, above sea level.

Overview

The town houses the offices of Hwange Town Council, as well as the headquarters of Hwange District Administration. Hwange and the surrounding countryside is a centre for the industry in Zimbabwe. Hwange Colliery is the largest in the country, with proven reserves that are estimated to last over 1,000 years, at current production levels. The Wankie Coal Field, one of the largest in the world, was discovered here in 1895 by the American Scout Frederick Russell Burnham. Today the coal for the whole country is transported by the mining railway to Thomson Junction, where it is handed over to the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) for onward transmission. In 2010, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique signed an agreement to develop a railway for the export of coal to Technobanine Point near Maputo. The cost per tonne of rail transport to the coast amounts to ten times the cost of extraction.

Hwange is also a tourism centre due to the presence of the nearby Hwange National Park, the largest National Park in Zimbabwe. The national park is home to a vast number of elephant, giraffe, lion and other wildlife. Royal Bank Zimbabwe, a commercial bank, maintains a branch in the town. Zimbabwe's biggest power plant, Hwange Thermal Power Station, was built here in the 1980s.

History

The town is named after the chieftain of Zwange, who is now called Chief Hwange. The town was known as Wankie until 1982.

Wankie Coal Mine Disaster

Main article: Wankie coal mine disaster

In June 1972, the deadliest mining disaster in the country's history took place when an underground explosion occurred in Wankie No.2 Colliery. Four hundred and twenty-seven miners lost their lives; three hundred and ninety-one Africans and thirty-six Europeans. Apart from the one hundred and seventy-six Rhodesians who died, there were ninety-one Zambians, fifty-two from Mozambique, thirty-seven from Malawi, thirty Tanzanians, thirteen from South West Africa, and one from Botswana.

Population

Hwange's population was recorded as 42,581 during Zimbabwe's 1992 census. As of the 2022 census, the town has a population of 21,300.

Climate

|location = Hwange (1961–1990) |metric first = yes |single line = yes |Jan high C = 29.2 |Feb high C = 28.9 |Mar high C = 28.8 |Apr high C = 27.9 |May high C = 26.2 |Jun high C = 24.0 |Jul high C = 24.1 |Aug high C = 26.9 |Sep high C = 30.9 |Oct high C = 32.1 |Nov high C = 31.7 |Dec high C = 29.7 |year high C = 28.4 |Jan low C = 18.1 |Feb low C = 17.7 |Mar low C = 16.8 |Apr low C = 13.4 |May low C = 8.7 |Jun low C = 4.9 |Jul low C = 4.6 |Aug low C = 7.2 |Sep low C = 12.1 |Oct low C = 16.0 |Nov low C = 17.5 |Dec low C = 18.0 |year low C = 12.9 |rain colour = green |Jan rain mm = 145.1 |Feb rain mm = 128.9 |Mar rain mm = 57.1 |Apr rain mm = 20.3 |May rain mm = 2.6 |Jun rain mm = 0.1 |Jul rain mm = 0.0 |Aug rain mm = 0.6 |Sep rain mm = 1.6 |Oct rain mm = 21.4 |Nov rain mm = 55.8 |Dec rain mm = 126.5 |year rain mm = 560.0 |Jan rain days = 12 |Feb rain days = 10 |Mar rain days = 7 |Apr rain days = 3 |May rain days = 1 |Jun rain days = 0 |Jul rain days = 0 |Aug rain days = 0 |Sep rain days = 1 |Oct rain days = 3 |Nov rain days = 7 |Dec rain days = 12 |year rain days = 56 |source 1 = World Meteorological Organization{{cite web | url = http://worldweather.wmo.int/en/city.html?cityId=965 | title = World Weather Information Service – Hwange | publisher = World Meteorological Organization | access-date = 13 May 2016}}

Sports

First-class cricket has been played in Hwange at the well established cricket venue located in the town, the Tom Kenton Oval, home of the Hwange (Wankie) cricket club, earlier called the Wankie Oval.

Hwange Colliery (formerly known as Wankie Colliery) is a Hwange-based soccer team.

References

References

  2. [https://www.citypopulation.de/en/zimbabwe/cities/ Citypopulation.de] Population of cities & urban localities in Zimbabwe
  3. "Distance between Hwange () and Victoria Falls () (Zimbabwe)".
  4. "Elevation of Hwange Above Sea Level".
  5. John Hays Hammond. (1935). "The Autobiography of John Hays Hammond". Farrar & Rinehart.
  6. [http://www.royalbank.co.zw/index.php/contact-us/branch-locator Branches of Royal Bank Zimbabwe] {{webarchive. link. (26 March 2012)
  7. "Wankie mine disaster report by G. J. Livingstone-Blevins 'Four Days In June'".
  8. "List of Casualties".
  9. Clifford Dupont. (1978). "The Reluctant President: The Memoirs of the Hon. Clifford Dupont, GCLM., ID". Books of Rhodesia Publishing Co. (Pvt) Ltd.
  10. "Republic of Zimbabwe".

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