No Fewer Than Six Lose Their Lives in Stampede at Ghanaian Military Recruitment Drive
No fewer than 6 people have died during a stampede at a military recruitment gathering held in a stadium in Ghana.
The Wednesday's "tragic" incident seems to have been caused by "an unexpected surge of candidates who breached security protocols and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from Ghana's armed forces.
Twenty-two additional individuals were hurt, including 5 who are in serious state.
Thousands had gathered at the El-Wak sports venue, in the capital, the capital, with the aspiration of joining the armed forces.
The country has a youth unemployment rate of approximately 32%, the latest government statistics show, and such enlistment drives typically draw massive gatherings and often lead to chaotic scenes.
The deadline to submit applications for this event was prolonged for a seven days to accommodate additional candidates, as a number had faced difficulties in the application procedure.
Army spokesperson Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
The nation's leader President John Mahama has gone to see the injured in medical care.
Calm has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has since started.
