THIRTY-FIVE bodies have so far been retrieved from floodwaters across the country by volunteers and rescue workers who described the havoc after Sunday’s downpour as the worst flood disaster in Ghana’s recent history.
Averaging 24 millimetres (mm) in Accra, 50.1mm and 50.7mm in Tema and Ashaiman respectively and 84.7mm in Pokuase, the volume of the downpour came nowhere near last year’s record figure of 313mm registered at Kaneshie, according to officials of the Meteorological Agency.
Officials of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), however, described its tragic aftermath as the worst flood disaster in the country’s recent history.
As of press time yesterday, the rescue teams had retrieved 17 bodies from the floods at Ashaiman, two at Tema, one at Dawhenya, four at Nmai Dzorn and 11 at Agona Nyarkrom in the Central Region.
NADMO officials also confirmed that the rains had caused extensive damage to moveable and immovable property at the affected areas and beyond and left hundreds of residents in Ashaiman, Kpone and Dawhenya all in the Tema metropolis, displaced.
Out of the 11 people who died in Nyarkrom in two separate incidents during the rains, seven drowned in the Punu River on the outskirts of the town around 11 a.m on Sunday when their Hyundai Grace Mini bus with registration number CR 522-10 was swept into the river which had overflown its banks, reports Samuel Kyei-Boateng.
Six of the bodies were retrieved and identified as Kweku Agbede, 47, Kwame Ocran 22, Alhaji Bella, Afua Saawah, 52, Charlotte Incoom, 22, Esi Abban, 32.
All the deceased except Alhaji Bella were passengers who were trapped in the vehicle.
Alhaji Bella who went to the scene in an attempt to rescue some of the trapped people in the bus ended up getting drowned in the process.
Divers, however, managed to rescue seven of the passengers on board the bus.
They are Kojo Abraham, 33, the driver of the bus; his mate, Kofi Atta; Mary Baidoo, Rita Enya, Deborah Afezie, Anastasia Arthur and Joshua Ansong.
According to a police source, the minibus, which was fully loaded with passengers, was on its way to Breman Asikuma from Agona Swedru.
It said when the driver reached Agona Nyakrom at about 11 a.m, he realised that the Pumu River had overflown its banks but he risked to cross the bridge spanning it against the advice of people resident in the area.
The source said on reaching the middle of the floods the driver realised that he could not cross the river so decided to return to Agona Swedru but the strong currents of the floods overturned the vehicle.
It said a number of people including the late Alhaji Bella tried in vain to rescue the trapped passengers.
The source said yesterday morning a team of divers managed to retrieve seven bodies leaving one that could not be traced.
Six of the bodies have been deposited at the Agona Swedru Government Hospital.
In the second incident, four men got drowned in the Agona River as the floodwater swept them away with other personal effects.
From Agona Swedru, Kwamena Apponsah reports that about 2,000 people have been displaced as a result of the floods.
No deaths had been confirmed by the police as of press time yesterday.
About 1,500 of the displaced people were from Sabon Zongo, a suburb of the town, and were being housed at the Swedru Town Hall by the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), which was also registering them.
Many houses in Otabilkrom, Kwaladi, Ankyease, Kubease, Nkubem, Mangoase, Desuanim and Nsawam, all suburbs of the town, have collapsed.
All buildings in Salem, also a suburb, have collapsed except the Presbyterian Church, manse and a newly built nursery.
As of noon yesterday, the Central Regional Minister, Madam Ama Benyiwa Doe, was in a meeting with members of the Agona West Municipal Security Council on what steps to take to assuage the suffering of the people.
A resident of Tema, Mr George Darpoh, blamed the chiefs and opinion leaders in the community for the havoc, reports Della Russel Ocloo from Tema.
According to him, several layouts earmarked for drainage construction, as well as other development, by road agencies and the district assembly have been sold to private developers who in turn developed them into residential facilities.
The Minister of Road and Highways, Mr Joe Gidisu, who was in the areas to access the situation, blamed the spillover on the buildings which had been sited on watercourses.
He also attributed the Dawhenya incident to a breakdown of the irrigation dam located in the community and indicated that his ministry together with the Works and Housing and Agric ministries would be engaged in a collaborative overhauling programme aimed at reducing the occurrence.
Mr Gidisu expressed regret at the politicisation of recent demolishing exercises carried out by metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies and charged Ghanaians to take a cue from Sunday’s incident so as to forestall future occurrences.
With clear signs of more disasters to come, the Ghana Police Service has asked the general public to be vigilant and report signs of floods and other disasters to the security agencies in order to ensure a swift response and prevent any such calamity, reports Kofi Yeboah.
It asked the public to reach the police on its hotlines including 0302773695,0302773906, 1855 on MTN short code and 191 on Tigo, Kasapa, Zain and Vodafone.
The Director of the Police Public Relations Directorate, DSP Kwesi Ofori, who gave the advice through the Daily Graphic, urged leaders of flood-prone communities to be alert and raise the alarm for prompt response in such situations.
He said but for the swift response and vigilance of the police to last Sunday’s floods in some parts of Accra and Ashaiman to ensure the protection of life and property, the harm caused by the floods would have been worse.
He particularly commended Lance Corporal Amoo of the Madina Police for doing a yeoman’s job by rescuing a number of people trapped by the flood.
DSP Ofori said police personnel, for instance, had to direct vehicles away from the disaster areas to safe routes, while guiding residents to move to safety.
He said the police shared information with sister security agencies and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) during disasters, adding that in managing last Sunday’s flood, the police had to call upon its security allies for support.
He said it was the responsibility of the police to take note of the deceased and injured persons during the floods and other disasters for the purposes of further investigations.
DSP Ofori stressed the need for district assemblies and security agencies within flood-prone communities to educate the people on what to do during floods.
He also advised parents to educate their children on some precautionary measures they (children) needed to take when floods occurred, especially in their (parents’) absence.
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