Bawumiah Consoles Kintampo Fall Victims

 

Vice-President Mahamadu Bawumiah has called for thorough investigations into the tragic incident at the Kintampo Waterfall, which resulted in the death of 18 people.

Students from Wenchi Senior High School, and others from the University of Energy and Renewable Resources, were killed on Sunday, when a tree fell on them whilst swimming in the pool created by the waterfall during a rain storm.

Dr. Bawumiah, who rushed to Kintampo to sympathise with the victims and bereaved families yesterday, described the incident as unfortunate, as the future human resource potentials have pathetically lost their lives in their quest to enhance their studies through an excursion.

According to Dr. Bawumiah, a thorough investigation into the incident will help identify measures to be instituted to prevent such unfortunate incidents from occurring, and if they occur, the best way to minimise the rate of casualties.

The Minister for Tourism, Mrs. Catherine Afeku, had earlier gone to Kintampo, where she also disclosed that a safety audit would be conducted at all tourist attraction sites to make sure safety measures are instituted, to avert such occurrences.

Briefing the Vice President and his entourage, the Kintampo Municipal Coordinating Director, Mr. Siegfred Kwame Addo, disclosed that, so far, 19 persons  had been confirmed dead, 22 injured, six treated and discharged, while one each has been transferred to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Sunyani Regional Hospital and the Techiman Holy Family Hospital.

He added that 14 persons are yet to be transferred to Wenchi and Kintampo by the close of Monday.

Out of the dead, 12 are males whilst the remaining six are females. Also out of the 22 persons injured, 18 are males and four females.
He further indicated that students from the Wenchi Methodist Senior High School, who had gone for an excursion in the Northern Region, on their return, decided to visit the waterfall, since they were General Arts students, with most of them studying geography.

A total of 60 students embarked on the trip, so majority of the victims were from the Wenchi Methodist Senior High School, while six were students of the University of Energy and Natural Resources.

Dr. Bawumiah and his entourage visited the Kintampo Hospital to interact with the injured, where he later visited some bereaved families to express the government’s condolences.

An injured student of the Wenchi Senior High School, who was on admission at the Kintampo Hospital, Rose Donyina, narrated her ordeal at the waterfall, and how she was saved after she was hit by a branch of a tree, on her way out from the water.

She narrated that the first branch hit her on the staircase to the waterfalls, but she attempted to get up, but was unfortunately hit by another branch and was rendered motionless till the rescue team came to her aid.

As a second year student of the General Arts Class, Rose said the scene witnessed on that Sunday had demoralised her, and she doubts if she would ever go near waterfalls again in her life time.The Vice President advised the victims and encouraged them to have faith in Allah for their survival.

Dr. Bawumiah, at a visit to one of the bereaved families, which has lost their daughter, Agartha Asantewaa Frimpong, a second year student of Wenchi Methodist SHS, presented an undisclosed amount of money to the family, and urged them to be strong.

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  Vice-President Mahamadu Bawumiah has called for thorough investigations into the tragic incident at the Kintampo Waterfall, which resulted in the death of 18 people. Students from Wenchi Senior High School, and others from the University of Energy and Renewable Resources, were killed on Sunday, when a tree fell on them whilst swimming in the […]

The post Bawumiah Consoles Kintampo Fall Victims appeared first on The Chronicle - Ghana News.

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