21 Perish In Gory Crash

The mangled accident bus
TWENTY-ONE persons were killed and 11 others injured when a Mercedes Benz sprinter bus crashed into a Toyota Hiace mini bus on the Kumasi-Accra road on Sunday evening.

The accident occurred at about 6:00pm on the outskirts of the Asankare community near Juaso in the Ashanti Region, about 139 kilometres from Kumasi.

The speeding sprinter bus, in an attempt to overtake a car in front of it, collided dangerously with two vehicles from the opposite direction.

The crash was so severe that it resulted in the death of 21 passengers, with several others sustaining life-threatening injuries.

The gory incident occurred at Bompata Junction, between Kasanso and the Asankare Barrier in the Ashanti Region.

It took rescuers, made up of Fire Service and Police officers, several hours to get all the passengers out of the sprinter bus with registration number AS 6534-14, which was travelling from Accra to Kumasi.

An eyewitness said the accident happened when the sprinter bus driver veered into the lane of the Toyota Hiace bus registered GW 4679-13, which was coming from the opposite direction, and rammed into it, killing 15 people on the spot.

Five other passengers died on arrival at the Juaso Government Hospital, whereas another person also died at the Konongo Hospital.

DSP Samuel Laterbu, the Juaso District Police Commander, who confirmed the incident, said the deceased comprised 12 males and nine females.

He stated that 11 people were taken to Juaso District Hospital and Konongo Government Hospital, with some of them in critical condition.

An eyewitness told DAILY GUIDE that the driver of the Toyota Hiace bus tried to save the situation, but could not do so, as the sprinter bus driver had taken over his lane.

He explained that the sprinter bus driver, in an attempt to avoid crashing into the rear of a private car that was in front of it, veered onto the lane of the urvan bus.

He disclosed that some of the passengers were thrown off the bus, while others were trapped inside it with broken limbs and smashed heads.

The eyewitness added that while fire-fighters worked tirelessly to free those stuck in the vehicle, police officers and other rescuers were on the scene to help stabilise and transport the injured victims to the hospital.

On his part, DCOP Kofi Boakye, the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, expressed sadness over the gory accident.

He stated that vehicular accidents were on the ascendancy, which was not helping Ghana's developmental aspirations.

DCOP Kofi Boakye charged road users, especially drivers, to be disciplined and abide by road traffic regulations at all times.

He was of the view that the country could not afford to lose its human resource due to recklessness on the part of drivers on the road.

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From Ernest Kofi Adu & I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi