No Fewer Than 6 Lose Their Lives in Stampede at Ghanaian Military Recruitment Drive
At least 6 individuals have died amid a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment gathering held in a stadium in Ghana.
The midweek "devastating" incident appeared to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," announced a statement from the nation's military.
Twenty-two additional individuals were injured, including 5 who are in serious state.
A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the capital, Accra, with the aspiration of joining the armed forces.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of approximately thirty-two percent, the most recent government statistics show, and such enlistment drives normally attract massive gatherings and often result in chaotic scenes.
The closing date to submit applications for this event was extended by a week to allow for more applicants, as some had faced difficulties in the application procedure.
Military representative Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
The nation's leader President John Mahama has visited the wounded in medical care.
Order has been restored, and the enlistment process has since started.
