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12.05.2012 General News

2 Killed In Ofankor Accident

By Daily Guide
Gloria Arthur, a victim of the La T-Junction accidentGloria Arthur, a victim of the La T-Junction accident
12.05.2012 LISTEN

A Mercedes Benz Sprinter bus with registration number GW 4645-12, travelling from Accra to Kumasi, yesterday knocked and killed a pedestrian, Hannah Ofosua, 45, and her son Nathaniel Goglome, 11.

The mother and her child, according to the Mile 7 District Police Commander, Peter Yembila, had travelled from Akim Tumfa in the Eastern Region on a Metro Mass Transport bus from which they alighted in the middle of the Achimota-Ofankor dual carriage road at a spot called Plot M, due to the ongoing construction works on the road.

While crossing to the other side of the road, they met their untimely death, drawing an angry mob to the scene who immediately vandalized the bus.

The driver was however rescued and detained at the police station.

The District Commander bemoaned the spate of carnage on that portion of the road, saying the death of Hannah and her son bought to about 10, the number of deaths recorded within two weeks between the St. John's Senior High School and Ofankor Old Barrier stretch of the road.

That, he said, was unacceptable as he urged drivers to note that the road was still under construction and so they should reduce their speed.

He however noted that the state of the road had left drivers with no option but to drop and pick passengers in the middle of the road since the traditional bus stops were yet to be demarcated.

In a related development, there was a near fatal accident at the T-Junction in Labadi involving a Benz bus with registration number GR 2179 C.

The bus, travelling from Nungua to Tema Station in Accra, somersaulted and fell into a big drain, with passengers losing valuables to rescuers and the ditch.

Relatives thronged the La District Police Station to check on their relations who they suspected might be victims of the accident when the news broke, especially when rumours put the number of deaths at 6, a speculation which turned out to be untrue

When DAILY GUIDE visited the La Police Station,   some of the 33 passengers on board the 33-seater Benz bus were writing their statements.

The National MTTU Commander, ACP Angwubutuge Awuni, said that four victims were on admission at the 37 Military Hospital, while one was admitted to the La General Hospital, with most of them who sustained minor injuries treated and discharged.

A few of the victims, mostly traders at Tema Station, who spoke with DAILY GUIDE, complained about their lost money and valuables to people who came to ostensibly rescue them from the drain in which they were trapped.

Samuel Owusu Adjei, 29, a victim, said he joined the bus at C-5, Nungua, at about 6:30am but when the bus got to the 48 Engineering Regiment Camp at Teshie, the engine of the vehicle which was fully loaded ceased functioning.

That caused agitation among passengers who asked the driver, Boye Seth Sowah, to allow them to get off the bus if it was faulty, but he insisted he could continue the journey.

Adjei said he was not convinced about the driving skills of the driver but when he expressed his reservations, a female passenger started a quarrel with him so he shut up.

A few metres away from the Kpeshie Bridge, the driver began to lose control of the bus while passengers began shouting 'Jesus! Jesus! Awurade be gye yen oo!' Three infants on their mothers' laps began to shed tears as the bus soon completely veered off the road and headed for the ditch near the Shell Fuel Station, opposite the Labadi Beach Resort at the T-Junction.

'It was only God that saved us. We could have perished,' exclaimed Adjei, who lost his phone and a wallet containing GH¢150.50.

Another victim, Kate Afriyie Badu, a trader, lost GH¢250 and some soap she was going to sell.

Most of the passengers said the driver's mate did not even give them change after they paid their fares and rather left with their money, leaving them to their fate.

Meanwhile, the La Police have started searching for Boye Sowah, 34, and his mate who abandoned the injured passengers and went into hiding.

Anybody who knows of their whereabouts should contact the La Police.

Rocklyn Antonio
 
 
 

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