6 unforgettable disasters that shook Ghana to the core

A high concentration of people and physical and financial assets in cities means that a single accident can cause catastrophic effects and destroy years of development gains. The increasing urbanization is shaping where and when disaster strikes and whom it affects most.

Significantly, evidence suggests that the government has failed to incorporate lessons gleaned from past disasters into policies to avert future disasters.

Some of the notable ones include the Accra Sports Stadium disaster, the collapse of a Melcom shopping centre in Accra, fire and explosions, and the recent disaster which is the spillage of the Akosombo dam.

Accra Sports Stadium disaster

The Accra Sports Stadium disaster occurred at the Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra on May 9, 2001.

It took the lives of 126 people, making it the worst stadium disaster to have ever taken place in Africa.

Ghana's two most successful football teams played that day, Accra Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko.

Officials were anticipating crowd disturbances and had taken extra security measures.

Accra scored two late goals, and a referee called 2–1, resulting in disappointed Kotoko fans throwing plastic seats and bottles onto the pitch.

The police responded by firing tear gas into the crowd. Panic and a stampede ensued as fans tried to escape.

The gates were locked and the stadium's compromised design left a bottleneck, with fewer exits than originally planned.

After the hour-long ordeal, it was found that 116 deaths resulted from compressive asphyxia and 10 fans died from trauma.

Accra Sports Stadium disaster Pulse Ghana

June 3, 2015 disaster

On June 3, 2015, a GOIL fuel station near Kwame Nkrumah Interchange burnt with people and vehicles in the vicinity.

The 2015 Accra floods resulted from heavy continuous rainfall in Accra.

The floods resulted in heavy traffic on the roads and also halted the movement of commercial activities as markets were flooded and workers were trapped.

Over 200 people were feared dead and bodies were moved to the 37 Military Hospital. The hospital later announced they were unable to hold more bodies.

June 3 fire and flood disaster Pulse Ghana

Atomic Junction gas explosion

Two filling stations at Atomic Junction got burnt after a gas station around the area exploded

A massive gas explosion on October 6, 2017, saw Accra plunged into total sorrow.

Some lives were lost and people were critically injured in the Madina Atomic Junction gas explosion.

Frightened residents fled the site as the huge blasts near the busy intersection in northeast Accra caused casualties, officials confirmed.

The blasts sent a giant fireball into the sky above the eastern part of Accra, causing frightened residents to flee their homes in large numbers.

Police said the blasts happened at the Atomic Junction roundabout area of Legon.

A statement from the Ministry of Information said that seven people had been killed and 132 were injured. About half of them had already been treated and discharged.

The explosion began at a state-owned GOIL liquefied natural gas station and spread to a Total petrol station across the street, forcing frightened residents to flee.

Over 3 people have been confirmed dead and some others were critically injured in the Madina Atomic Junction gas explosion Saturday night.

The deaths were confirmed at the 37 military hospital.

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Huge explosion at Apiate

At least 13 are reported to have died when an unfortunate disaster happened at Apiate in the Bogoso District of the Western Region after a motorcycle collided with a vehicle carrying explosives.

The huge explosion disaster happened on Thursday, January 20, 2022, when a vehicle transporting explosives from Kumasi to a mining site in the area exploded.

An additional 59 people sustained various degrees of injuries in the explosion.

Most of the victims have been rescued and admitted to various hospitals and clinics.

Apiate explosion Pulse Ghana

Melcom shopping mall collapse

The collapse of the 5-storey Achimota Melcom Shopping Centre on Wednesday, November 7, 2012, was an undesirable blow that came upon us, as a country resulting in the loss of lives, injury to many, and loss of property. Words cannot easily express the ripple effect of this collapse.

At least nine people have been confirmed dead, while 69 others were rescued from the rubble of a building that caved in Accra as a fallout over who owned the building threatens to shadow the disaster.

The building which served as a shopping outlet for retail giants Melcom was said to have lacked proper permits as well as the required structural integrity.

Melcom shopping mall collapse Pulse Ghana

Akosombo dam spillage flood

The Akosombo Dam spillage is a flood that occurred in the south-eastern part of Ghana.

This is due to a controlled spillage of the Akosombo Dam and the Kpong Dam by the Volta River Authority (VRA) to address rising water levels.

The spillage exercise started on September 15, 2023. This was increased on October 9, 2023, due to the continued rise of the water level.

The spillage led to the displacement of 8,000 people in 8 communities along the Volta River downstream, with Mepe being the most affected. The numbers have since increased to 31,000 as of October 19, 2023.

7 districts were hit by the floods. Farmlands, houses, and other properties were affected in the Greater Accra, Eastern, and Volta regions.

South Tongu, Central Tongu, North Tongu, Shai Osudoku, Anlo, Ada East and Asuogyaman districts are some of the hardest-hit districts.

Many houses have been swallowed by the raging floodwaters in communities such as Tefle, Wume, Sokpoe, Alikekope, Agorme, and Agbave among others.

Notable hospitality facilities affected by the floods include Villa Cisneros, Sogakope Beach Resort and Spa, and Holy Trinity Spa and Health Farm.

At least 25 nurses were evacuated from the nu

In Mepe, the dire situation of flooding following the spillage of the Akosombo Dam displaced over 31,000 residents.

Akosombo dam spillage Pulse Ghana