No Fewer Than Six Lose Their Lives in Stampede at Ghanaian Armed Forces Enlistment Drive
No fewer than 6 people have died during a crowd crush at a military recruitment gathering held in a stadium in the West African nation.
The Wednesday's "devastating" event appeared to have been caused by "an unexpected surge of candidates who breached security protocols and rushed into the gates," stated a release from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two additional individuals were hurt, among them five who remain in critical condition.
A large crowd had gathered at El-Wak stadium, in the main city, the capital, with the aspiration of enlisting in the military.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about thirty-two percent, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives normally attract large crowds and often lead to disorderly situations.
The deadline to submit applications for this event was prolonged for a seven days to allow for more applicants, as some had experienced challenges in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
The nation's leader John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in medical care.
Calm has been restored, and the enlistment process has now started.
