At Least Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghana Armed Forces Enlistment Event
No fewer than 6 people have died amid a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment event held in a sports arena in the West African nation.
The Wednesday's "tragic" event seems to have been triggered by "an unexpected surge of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two additional individuals were injured, among them five who are in critical condition.
A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the main city, the capital, with the aspiration of enlisting in the military.
The country has a rate of joblessness among young people of about 32%, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives normally draw large crowds and frequently result in chaotic scenes.
The closing date to submit applications for this recruitment was extended by a seven days to allow for more applicants, as some had experienced challenges in the application procedure.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede occurred ahead of the planned commencement time of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
Ghana's President President John Mahama has gone to see the injured in hospital.
Order has been reestablished, and the enlistment process has now started.