The sad news was confirmed by Zambia Police Force through their Public Relations Officer Rae Hamoonga who said: “Today (Saturday) April 13th, at 12:20 hours, Kafue Traffic recorded a fatal road traffic accident along the Great North Road at Kafue S Corners near Kafue Quarry.
What happened to Kalaba?
"The incident involved Muyunda Isaac, aged 32 years, of Kamwala South, who was driving a Howo truck horse with registration number AIC 805 and trailer number BAC 9540.
"The truck sustained extensive damage. Additionally, an unidentified female driver of an unknown residence was driving a Mercedes Benz car, unregistered, from south to north direction. Unfortunately, she succumbed to her injuries at the scene of the accident. The Mercedes Benz car also suffered significant damage."
The statement continued; “A passenger, Rainford (Kalaba), aged 37 years, of Mufurira, Copperbelt Province, was onboard the Mercedes Benz vehicle. He sustained suspected internal injuries and has been promptly transported to UTH for further medical attention. Preliminary investigations indicate that the accident occurred as a result of improper overtaking by the Benz car, leading to a collision with the oncoming truck.”
On Sunday, the University Teaching Hospital (UTH), where Kalaba was admitted, issued a statement through Public Relations Officer Nzemba Chanda confirming that the former Chipolopolo captain was critical but in a stable condition.
"Kalaba is still admitted at the University Teaching Hospital, the current situation is critical but stable as compared to yesterday (Saturday). The medical teams are still working round the clock to improve his condition," read the update from Chanda.
How was the news received in Zambia?
Zambia President Hakainde Hichilema led the way by asking the Copper Belt nation to pray for Kalaba, whom he described as a legendary hero. “Wish you quick recovery legend and hero,” the Head of State wrote on his social media pages. “The Nation is praying for you!”
Former Zambia President Edgar Chagwa Lungu resorted to prayers for the player he said had done good things to the country. “This Saturday, we join hands as Zambians to pray to God for our young ‘Master’, Rainford Kalaba’s life. He means many good things to our football sport in this country.
"Dear God, we pray for grace, mercy, and healing for him as you also strengthen his family, close friends, and for all of us as Zambia. Save his dear life and heal him, O’Lord, in Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen."
Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) President Andrew Kamanga said they were keeping tabs on the situation of Kalaba and remained hopeful that he would eventually pull through.
“The FAZ entourage led by vice-president Justin Mumba and general secretary Reuben Kamanga were on hand straight from a tour of duty in Choma to see Kalaba hours after he had been admitted at the University Teaching Hospital on Saturday,” said Kamanga in a statement obtained by Flashscore.
"On Sunday, we visited Kalaba with the general secretary and other secretariat staff and were made aware of the tremendous efforts the medical staff are putting in to help our champion recover. The medics are no doubt doing their best to ensure he receives the best possible care and support.
"We are working closely with the authorities both the Ministry of Health and Sports in making sure we create the best possible environment for our champion to receive due care and treatment and our appeal to everyone is to keep the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) winning star in their prayers."
However, Kamanga did not have kind words to those, who peddled malicious rumours about the state of Kalaba after the accident and further thanked the police for their accurate and timely update saying they had to rely on them before making any announcement.
“On a sad note, we were taken aback by the ‘breaking news’ syndrome that characterised the announcement of his hospitalization. Despite our good efforts to ensure that due care was taken before making any major announcement on his health status, the runaway social media train had run ahead of everyone,” explained Kamanga.
"We salute the police, with whom we were in touch all the time that provided an accurate and timely update. There is no substitute for professionalism in such delicate moments and we had to rely on the police and health authorities before making any announcement."
Kalaba’s former club TP Mazembe wrote: "We are with you our ‘Master’ and wish you a quick recovery."
Who is Rainford Kalaba?
Born in Kitwe, on August 14th, 1986, Kalaba started his career at Afrisports Kitwe United, which later rebranded to Kitwe United, signing his first professional contract in 2005. At Kitwe, Kalaba managed 26 appearances and scored 19 goals.
After one season, he moved to Nice B in France where he played for only three matches and did not score. He later returned to Zambia and signed for Zesco United where he helped them win the Zambian Cup in 2006 and the Zambian Super League title in 2007. He was also the top scorer for that season with 23 goals.
After his success with Zesco, he returned to Europe and signed a five-year contract with Primeira Liga side Braga in April 2008. He did not play for Braga, who loaned him out to Gil Vicente FC, where he managed 22 appearances and scored four goals.
In 2009, Braga once again sent him on loan to UD Leiria, where he played for only three matches and scored one goal.
In 2011, Kalaba returned to Africa and signed for the Democratic Republic of Congo giants TP Mazembe and it was here where he won several accolades. First, he helped TP Mazembe to five consecutive league titles – 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016 – and their fifth CAF Champions League title in 2015 after defeating USM Alger of Algeria 4-1 aggregate in the final.
He won the CAF Super Cup in 2011 and 2016 and lifted the Confederation Cup title with Mazembe in 2016, finishing as the top scorer with seven goals. In total, Kalaba managed 280 appearances for Mazembe in all competitions and scored 78 goals.
How did Kalaba fair for Zambia's Chipolopolo?
On the international scene, Kalaba debuted for Zambia’s Chipolopolo on June 11th, 2005, in a 3-0 victory against Eswatini during the COSAFA Cup and he never looked back.
His most memorable achievement was to help Zambia lift the 2012 AFCON title after defeating Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties. Though Kalaba had missed his effort from the penalty spot, which he blasted wide, Stoppila Sunzu scored the winner to hand Chipolopolo the trophy.
Kalaba made history, after featuring for his 100th game for Zambia in June 2017 where they lost 1-0 against Mozambique. Kalaba was later not chosen in the squads for the 2018 World Cup qualifying matches against Algeria and Nigeria in the autumn of 2017.
After an exciting 18-year football journey, Kalaba, who recorded 103 matches for Chipolopolo and scored 15 goals, announced on June 29th, 2023, that he was hanging his boots to take up a coaching role at TP Mazembe.
“After 13 years at TP Mazembe, today I hang up my boots. It is my gratitude and honor to have been part of the Mazembe family during my playing days. I’ll never forget the good times I had on the pitch in the TP jersey and captain the team once in my career,” explained Kalaba on his official social media pages.
“I am sad to announce my retirement to all my fans around the world, it hasn’t been an easy journey for me. I am glad that I will continue working with the TP Mazembe technical team. Let’s see what this new journey has to offer. Thank you once more to you all my beloved fans God bless.”
Flashcore News wishes Kalaba a quick recovery.
