No Fewer Than Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghanaian Armed Forces Enlistment Event
At least 6 people have died during a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment event held in a stadium in Ghana.
The Wednesday's "devastating" event appeared to have been caused by "a sudden rush of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two others were hurt, among them 5 who remain in serious state.
A large crowd had turned up at El-Wak stadium, in the main city, the capital, with the hope of joining the armed forces.
Ghana has a rate of joblessness among young people of about thirty-two percent, the most recent government statistics show, and such enlistment drives typically draw massive gatherings and frequently result in disorderly situations.
The closing date to apply for this recruitment was extended by a seven days to accommodate more applicants, as a number had faced challenges in the application procedure.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the crush occurred before the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
The nation's leader John Mahama has gone to see the injured in medical care.
Calm has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has now begun.
