At Least Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghana Armed Forces Enlistment Drive
No fewer than six people have lost their lives during a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment gathering held in a stadium in Ghana.
The midweek "devastating" incident appeared to have been caused by "an unexpected surge of applicants who breached security protocols and stormed the entrances," announced a release from Ghana's armed forces.
22 additional individuals were injured, including 5 who remain in serious state.
A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the capital, the capital, with the aspiration of joining the armed forces.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of approximately 32%, the latest government statistics show, and such enlistment drives normally attract massive gatherings and often result in chaotic scenes.
The deadline to apply for this event was extended by a seven days to accommodate more applicants, as some had experienced difficulties in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush took place before the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
Ghana's President President John Mahama has visited the injured in medical care.
Order has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has since started.
