No Fewer Than Six Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghana Military Recruitment Drive
At least 6 people have died during a crowd crush at a military recruitment event held in a stadium in Ghana.
The Wednesday's "tragic" incident seems to have been caused by "an unexpected surge of applicants who overcame security measures and stormed the gates," announced a release from the nation's military.
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.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about 32%, the most recent government statistics show, and such recruitment events typically draw large crowds and frequently result in disorderly situations.
The deadline to apply for this event was extended by a seven days to allow for more applicants, as some had experienced challenges in the application procedure.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
The nation's leader John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in hospital.
Order has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has now started.
