At Least Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghana Armed Forces Enlistment Drive
At least 6 individuals have lost their lives amid a stampede at a armed forces enlistment gathering held in a stadium in the West African nation.
The Wednesday's "tragic" event appeared to have been caused by "an unexpected surge of candidates who breached security protocols and stormed the gates," announced a statement from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two additional individuals were injured, among them 5 who are in serious state.
Thousands had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the main city, the capital, with the aspiration of joining the military.
Ghana has a rate of joblessness among young people of approximately 32%, the most recent official data indicate, and such recruitment events typically draw large crowds and often lead to chaotic scenes.
The deadline to apply for this recruitment was extended by a seven days to accommodate additional candidates, as some had faced challenges in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the crush occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
The nation's leader President John Mahama has visited the injured in hospital.
Calm has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has now started.
