No Fewer Than Six Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghanaian Military Recruitment Event
No fewer than six individuals have lost their lives during a crowd crush at a military recruitment gathering held in a stadium in the West African nation.
The midweek "devastating" incident appeared to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from Ghana's armed forces.
22 others were hurt, including 5 who remain in critical condition.
A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the capital, Accra, with the hope of enlisting in the military.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of approximately thirty-two percent, the latest government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives normally draw large crowds and frequently result in disorderly situations.
The closing date to submit applications for this event was extended by a seven days to allow for additional candidates, as some had experienced difficulties in the application procedure.
Military representative Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
The nation's leader President John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in hospital.
Order has been reestablished, and the enlistment process has since started.
