At Least 6 Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghanaian Military Recruitment Drive
No fewer than 6 individuals have lost their lives during a stampede at a military recruitment event held in a sports arena in Ghana.
The Wednesday's "devastating" incident seems to have been triggered by "an unexpected surge of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," announced a release from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two additional individuals were hurt, including 5 who are in serious state.
Thousands had turned up at El-Wak stadium, in the capital, Accra, with the aspiration of enlisting in the military.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about 32%, the latest government statistics show, and such recruitment events normally draw massive gatherings and often lead to chaotic scenes.
The deadline to apply for this event was extended by a seven days to allow for additional candidates, as some had faced difficulties in the process.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
Ghana's President John Mahama has visited the injured in hospital.
Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has now begun.
