No Fewer Than Six Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghana Military Recruitment Drive
No fewer than 6 people have died amid a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment gathering held in a sports arena in the West African nation.
The Wednesday's "devastating" incident seems to have been caused by "a sudden rush of candidates who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," stated a release from Ghana's armed forces.
22 additional individuals were hurt, including five who are in serious state.
A large crowd had gathered 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 approximately 32%, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives normally draw massive gatherings and frequently result in chaotic scenes.
The deadline to submit applications for this recruitment was prolonged for a week to accommodate more applicants, as a number had faced difficulties in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the crush occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
The nation's leader John Mahama has visited the injured in hospital.
Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has now begun.
