No Fewer Than Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghanaian Armed Forces Enlistment Event
No fewer than six individuals have lost their lives during a stampede at a military recruitment gathering held in a sports arena in Ghana.
The Wednesday's "tragic" incident appeared to have been caused by "a sudden rush of candidates who breached security protocols and rushed into the entrances," stated a release from Ghana's armed forces.
22 others were injured, including 5 who are in serious state.
A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the main city, the capital, with the aspiration of enlisting in the armed forces.
The country has a youth unemployment rate of about 32%, the most recent official data indicate, and such recruitment events normally attract large crowds and often result in chaotic scenes.
The deadline to apply for this recruitment was prolonged for a seven days to accommodate additional candidates, as a number had experienced difficulties in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush occurred ahead of the planned commencement time of 06:20 GMT.
The nation's leader John Mahama has visited the wounded in medical care.
Order has been restored, and the enlistment process has since started.
