No Fewer Than Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghana Military Recruitment Drive
No fewer than 6 people have lost their lives during a stampede at a armed forces enlistment event held in a stadium in the West African nation.
The Wednesday's "devastating" incident seems to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of candidates who breached security protocols and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from the nation's military.
22 additional individuals were hurt, among them five who are in serious state.
A large crowd had turned up at El-Wak stadium, in the capital, Accra, with the aspiration of enlisting in the armed forces.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about thirty-two percent, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such recruitment events normally draw large crowds and frequently lead to disorderly situations.
The deadline to submit applications for this event was extended by a week to accommodate additional candidates, as a number had faced difficulties in the application procedure.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the crush took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
Ghana's President President John Mahama has visited the wounded in medical care.
Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has since started.
