No Fewer Than Six Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghana Military Recruitment Event
No fewer than 6 individuals have died amid a crowd crush at a armed forces enlistment gathering held in a stadium in Ghana.
The Wednesday's "tragic" incident seems to have been caused by "a sudden rush of candidates who breached security protocols and stormed the entrances," stated a statement from the nation's military.
Twenty-two others were injured, among them five who are in critical condition.
A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the capital, the capital, with the aspiration of enlisting in the military.
The country has a youth unemployment rate of about 32%, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives normally draw large crowds and frequently lead to disorderly situations.
The deadline to apply for this recruitment was extended by a seven days to accommodate additional candidates, as a number had faced challenges in the process.
Military representative Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.
The nation's leader President John Mahama has gone to see the injured in hospital.
Calm has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has since begun.
