No Fewer Than 6 Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghana Military Recruitment Event
No fewer than 6 people have died amid a crowd crush at a military recruitment gathering held in a sports arena in Ghana.
The midweek "devastating" event seems to have been triggered by "an unexpected surge of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from Ghana's armed forces.
22 others were hurt, among them 5 who remain in serious state.
Thousands had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the capital, Accra, with the aspiration of enlisting in the military.
Ghana has a rate of joblessness among young people of approximately 32%, the latest official data show, and such enlistment drives typically draw massive gatherings and frequently result in disorderly situations.
The closing date to submit applications for this event was extended by a seven days to accommodate more applicants, as a number had faced difficulties in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
Ghana's President President John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in hospital.
Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has now started.
