17 Killed as Truck Carrying Mining Explosives in Ghana Explodes, Destroying Hundreds of Buildings

A vehicle transporting industrial dynamite crashed with a motorbike in western Ghana, triggering an accident that demolished numerous structures and the death of individuals on site.

The disaster occurred at lunchtime in Apiate, at industrial settlement of Bogoso, approximately 300 kilometers west of Accra, the West African regional metropolis.

17 People Killed After Explosive Incident In Ghana

(Photo : Photo by VERA ACQUAH/AFP via Getty Images)
Debris of house and buildings that were destroyed when a vehicle carrying mining explosives detonated along a road in Apiate, Ghana, on January 21, 2022. - Ghana's government on Friday said it was investigating a massive blast involving a truck transporting mining explosives that killed at least 13 people and wounded dozens more.

Upon the incident, a big trench was made when a tractor traveling among two treasure troves in the mineral-rich territory collided with a motorbike.

chairman of the Prestea Huni-Valley city council, Isaac Dsamani said that the precise count of victims has still to be established and informed news reporters that authorities had recorded 17 lifeless cadavers thus far.

According to rescue personnel, a minimum of 57 people were hurt and were brought to nearby healthcare institutions.

Dr. Joseph Darko, who works at Apiate facility, informed AFP that five of the victims had been sent there, along with a five-year-old kid who is in a life-threatening state. Senior minister of the State Disaster Control Organization, Saji Amedonu revealed that over 500 structures had been demolished.

News agencies and eyewitnesses uploaded horrific photographs and videos of killed and wounded corpses on the pavement, as well as residences that had been leveled and ruined.

Ghana's leader, Nana Akufo-Addo, called the explosion a genuinely terrible, awful, and terrible tragedy, stressing that it resulted in the loss of innocent life and the devastation of assets.

The magnitude of the devastation and deaths inflicted by the explosion has triggered seismic waves throughout Ghana.

According to medical authorities, recovery operations in the area were ongoing, and the majority of the remaining casualties had been evacuated wherein several of them were stranded in fallen buildings and structures.

"Half of them were in their respective apartments and were then confined," Dsamani explained.

"We were fortunate to save a few of them. Several of them, apparently, but they were already passed when we arrived."

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Mining Explosives Destroyed Hundreds of Building

According to observers, after the crash, a motorist engaged in the mishap attempted to advise neighboring neighbors to escape when the motorbike took flames.

"The operator jumped out and told everyone to flee," Dsamani explained.

"Maybe certain folks were attempting to figure out what was going on. Whereas the driver was yelling for everyone to flee."

The entire thing detonated in within 10 minutes. As a result, the persons who sought to get to the location were the ones who suffered the hardest.

"Initial report has indicated that a mining dynamite truck crashed with a motorbike, leading in the blast," authorities claimed in a release.

"The general people has been asked to relocate to adjacent communities for their protection while rescue works are ongoing."

As to city governments, neighboring medical facilities were overwhelmed with casualties and authorities have ordered neighboring communities to offer their churches and schools in case there are any more victims.

Officers noted that backup had been dispatched to the location and urged everyone to show restraint. The vehicle transporting landmines was on its way to the Chirano mining operation, which is operated by Toronto-based Kinross.

A Kinross spokeswoman verified the event, stating that it happened 140 kilometers away from the site.

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