SIX people have died in the last week after eating poisonous mushrooms in Beatrice, a small town 55km south-west of Harare, police said.

Four members of the same family, including a three-year-old girl, were among the dead, Mashonaland East police spokeswoman Assistant Inspector Thando Madhoyo said.

Two girls whose names have not been released, a seven-year-old and her nine-year-old sister, died at the Chitungwiza General Hospital last week after eating the killer mushrooms picked by their mum, Maria Kwenda, at the Kerryboom Farm.

All six family members who ate the mushrooms were hospitalised and on Sunday, police announced two more children had died – three-year-old Constance Jossam and Remembrance Dzumbunu, 13.

On Tuesday, police said a mum and her 15-year-old daughter had also died after eating poisonous mushrooms from another area of Beatrice.

Shingirirai Mupfuti, 35, and her daughter Eunice Bauti reacted after eating mushrooms picked from Albion Farm last Friday.

Asst Insp Madhoyo told the Herald: “The two complained of terrible stomach pains that night.

"On Saturday, they went to Beatrice Hospital and were immediately transferred to Chitungwiza General Hospital.

"They were, however, pronounced dead on Sunday and their bodies are also at Chitungwiza General Hospital awaiting a post-mortem.”

Police believe the affected families misidentified a toxic mushroom as an edible species. They say there is a close resemblance in terms of colour and general morphology of the toxic mushrooms species with edible species.

Police are warning people in the affected areas to collect only mushrooms they are intimately familiar with, Madhoyo said.