No Fewer Than 6 Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghanaian Military Recruitment 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 Wednesday's "devastating" incident appeared to have been caused by "an unexpected surge of applicants who breached security protocols and stormed the gates," announced a release from Ghana's armed forces.
22 others were hurt, including 5 who are in critical condition.
A large crowd had turned up at El-Wak stadium, in the capital, the capital, with the hope of joining the military.
Ghana has a rate of joblessness among young people of approximately thirty-two percent, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives normally attract large crowds and often result in disorderly situations.
The closing date to apply for this recruitment was prolonged for a week to allow for more applicants, as some had faced challenges in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede took place ahead of the planned commencement time of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
The nation's leader John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in medical care.
Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has since started.
