Accra counts its dead after heavy rains

Two persons are reported dead at Kwashie-Bu in Accra after a heavy downpour Saturday afternoon wreaked vast destruction.

There are widely-held fears that the death toll could be higher as various communities in and around the capital sent distress calls to the National Disaster Management Organisation, the Military and other emergency relief institutions to help evacuate them immediately.

NADMO boss, George Isaac Amoh who is leading rescue missions after he was prompted by Joy News about the danger on hand, said that sections of the public were not forthcoming with information about exact location of residents of part of Gbawe whose houses were said to have been submerged under water and were waiting for urgent help on top of their roofs.

He told Joy News, the heavy flooding made it very difficult to access the communities directly, forcing the team in many instances to embark on meandering routes to reach victims.

The NADMO boss however assured that all the emergency units, including the military, Fire Service, Police, have been marshaled to help out the situation and they would work non-stop until the danger is cleared.

Mallam, Gbawe, Awoshie, Santa Maria, Kwashieman, Kwashie-Bu, Sakaman and Sowutuom, all low-lying portions of the city, have been flooded.
A resident of Kwashie-Bu, Kweku Franklin, who told myjoyonline that he saw the body of a woman and her daughter retrieved from their flooded house, said another resident, Nana had been swept away and was feared dead.

A caller to Joy FM who identified herself as Julie from Gbawe and sounding so alarmed, said the rains had also pulled down a number of buildings in their area and destroyed several properties.

Earlier in the day, the Ghana Meteorological Agency warned that a rainstorm observed to the east of the country and moving westwards would induce cloudy conditions over the entire country with thunderstorms and rain showers, accompanied by strong winds over both the northern and southern sectors of the country from the morning to the afternoon.

Thereafter, the agency expected a dull and cloudy atmosphere with low temperatures over the entire country.