 recruitment exercise at the El-Wak Stadium in Accra has claimed at least six lives and left 22 others injured, officials have confirmed. Five of the injured remain in critical condition.){kind=link}
A tragic crowd crush at a Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) recruitment exercise at the El-Wak Stadium in Accra has claimed at least six lives and left 22 others injured, officials have confirmed. Five of the injured remain in critical condition.
According to a statement from the Armed Forces, the deadly incident, was caused by “an unexpected surge of applicants who breached security protocols and rushed into the gates.” Thousands of young people had gathered at the stadium hoping to secure a place in the military amid Ghana’s high youth unemployment rate, currently estimated at 32%.
The application deadline for the recruitment exercise had been extended by a week due to earlier technical difficulties faced by applicants, contributing to the unusually large turnout.
GAF spokesperson, Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin, explained that the crush occurred even before the scheduled start time of 06:20 GMT. She said the exercise, which initially continued despite the tragedy, had to be suspended in the afternoon to allow authorities to implement additional safety measures.
In Accra, scenes of distress unfolded at the 37 Military Hospital, where anxious families converged, seeking updates on their relatives. Security personnel struggled to manage the growing crowd as relatives wept and clamoured for information.
President John Mahama visited the hospital in the afternoon to console the injured and assure families of the government’s support.
Meanwhile, a separate recruitment session in Kumasi also recorded casualties on the same day, with five people injured, according to a report by regional official Dr. Frank Amoakohene.
Capt Arhin said a full investigation will be conducted to determine the cause of the deadly surge and recommend measures to prevent similar tragedies in future recruitment exercises.