At Least Six Lose Their Lives in Crowd Crush at Ghana Armed Forces Enlistment Drive
At least 6 individuals have died amid a stampede at a military recruitment gathering held in a sports arena in the West African nation.
The Wednesday's "devastating" incident appeared to have been caused by "a sudden rush of applicants who breached security protocols and rushed into the gates," announced a release from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two others were injured, among them 5 who are in serious state.
Thousands had gathered 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 enlistment drives typically attract large crowds and often result in disorderly situations.
The closing date to apply for this event was extended by a seven days to accommodate more applicants, as a number had experienced difficulties in the process.
Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin said the stampede occurred before the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
Ghana's President John Mahama has gone to see the injured in medical care.
Order has been restored, and the enlistment process has since started.
