No Fewer Than Six Perish in Stampede at Ghanaian Military Recruitment Drive
No fewer than six people have lost their lives during a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment event held in a sports arena in Ghana.
The midweek "tragic" incident seems to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the entrances," stated a release from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two additional individuals were hurt, including five who are in serious state.
Thousands had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the main city, Accra, with the aspiration of enlisting in the armed forces.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of approximately thirty-two percent, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such recruitment events typically draw large crowds and often result in chaotic scenes.
The deadline to apply for this recruitment was prolonged for a week to accommodate more applicants, as a number had faced challenges in the process.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush took place ahead of the planned commencement time of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
Ghana's President John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in hospital.
Order has been reestablished, and the enlistment process has since begun.