Explosion Rocks Western Ghana, Kills Dozens

• It’s ‘a truly sad, unfortunate and tragic incident’ – President Akufo-Addo

Dozens of people are feared dead after a truck carrying mining explosives collided with a motorcycle in western Ghana, sparking an explosion that has left hundreds of buildings destroyed.

The accident happened around noon in Apiate, near the mining city of Bogoso, about 300 kilometres (180 miles) west of Accra, the Ghanaian capital.

Reports said the blast, which flattened hundreds of buildings, killed at least 17 people, with an unknown number of nearby residents yet to be accounted for.

According to the reports, a large crater was left following the explosion, after a truck that was travelling between two goldmines in the mineral-rich region hit the said motorcycle.

The exact number of casualties has not been officially confirmed, but the Head of the Prestea Huni-Valley municipal government where the explosion took place, Isaac Dsamani, told local media that officials had counted “about 17 dead bodies” so far.

The extent of the destruction and casualties caused by the blast has sent shock waves through Ghana with emergency services continuing rescue efforts in the town and most of the surviving victims being rescued, especially many found trapped in collapsed homes and buildings.

“Some of them were in their rooms, and then they were trapped,” Dsamani said. “We were able to rescue some of them. Some of them too, unfortunately before we rescued them they had already gone.”

Also, some witnesses told local officials that following the collision, a driver involved in the accident tried to warn local residents to flee after the motorcycle caught fire.

“So the driver got down and was telling people to run away,” Dsamani said. “And some people were trying to find out what was really happening. While the driver was shouting that people should run away … in about 10 minutes’ time, the whole thing exploded. So people who had tried to arrive at the scene were the people most affected.”

At least 57 injured persons were taken to local hospitals, emergency officials said, even as Dr Joseph Darko, working at Apiate hospital, told AFP that five of the casualties were brought there for urgent medical attention, “including a five-year-old child who is in a life-threatening condition”.

Also, Seji Saji Amedonu, Deputy Director-General of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NDMO), said more than 500 buildings had been destroyed, with graphic images and footage posted by local media and witnesses showing dead and injured bodies on the ground, and homes levelled and destroyed.

Reacting to the unfortunate incident, Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo said the blast was “a truly sad, unfortunate and tragic incident”, adding in his statement that it had caused “the loss of lives and the destruction of properties”.

Meanwhile, a statement by police said: “Preliminary investigation has established that a mining explosive vehicle … collided with a motorcycle resulting in the explosion”, adding; “The public has been advised to move out of the area to nearby towns for their safety while recovery efforts are underway.”

With local officials saying that nearby hospitals and clinics were overrun with victims, the Police have asked surrounding villages to open their schools and churches to accommodate any additional casualties.

The Police authorities, while appealing for calm, said reinforcements had been deployed to the scene of the incident.

The truck carrying explosives was en route to the Chirano gold mine, run by the Toronto-based Kinross. A Kinross spokesperson confirmed the incident, saying it occurred 140km (87 miles) from the mine. – The Guardian