No Fewer Than Six Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghana Armed Forces Enlistment Event
At least 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 appeared to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of applicants who breached security protocols and stormed the gates," stated a release from the nation's military.
Twenty-two additional individuals were hurt, including 5 who are in critical condition.
Thousands had gathered at the El-Wak sports venue, in the main city, Accra, with the hope of joining the military.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about thirty-two percent, the latest official data show, and such enlistment drives typically attract massive gatherings and often result in disorderly situations.
The deadline to submit applications for this recruitment was prolonged for a seven days to accommodate more applicants, as a number had experienced difficulties in the application procedure.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin said the stampede took place before the planned commencement time of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
The nation's leader President John Mahama has gone to see the injured in hospital.
Calm has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has since begun.
