Assistant headmaster of Mpatasie D/A JHS dies after falling into mining pit

The deceased, 47-year-old Akwasi Anane, met his untimely death on October 4, 2022.

Reports say while on his routine visit to the mining concession around 9 p.m. on the fateful day, the deceased misstepped and fell into the abandoned pit.

Although a rescue mission managed to remove him from the pit, he was pronounced dead on the scene.

A District Coordinator for the National Disaster Management Organization for Amansie South, Edward Oduro Nsiah, is reported to have confirmed the incident.

“He is a teacher and he also has a concession so he went to the site very late. He stood on top of the pit and in an attempt to make a step he slipped and fell into the pit. His body has been deposited at the St. Martin’s Hospital at Agroyesum,” he told dailymailgh.com.

Nsiah lamented that before Anane’s demise, six people had lost their lives in the same community due to illegal mining activities.

“The fight against galamsey is not paying off. For instance when you come to Amansie South nearly 80 percent of the indigenes are into illegal mining. In the last two months, we have lost at least six lives at separate locations and that is very worrying,” he cried.

This incident comes not long after the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Abu Jinapor, visited the same Amansie South and bemoaned the level of destruction illegal mining activities have caused to the area.

“It should baffle all of us as citizens and policymakers and stakeholders in this fight how an operation like this in the heart of the forest and the far away areas of our country can go on without notice by police, chiefs, the local political leadership, assembly people, the District Chief Executive and even the inspectorate division of the minerals commission here.”

Illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, has dominated discussions on all media platforms across the country due to its booming despite promises by the Akufo-Addo-led NPP government to end it.