Monday, 8 June 2015

National mourning begins in Ghana after deadly blaze

Accra - Flags flew at half mast in
Ghana on Monday as three days of
mourning began to honour more
than 150 killed in a petrol station
fire during heavy flooding in the
capital, Accra.
The government asked the public to
wear black as a mark of respect to
those who died, as the Red Cross
said that 9 250 people have been
affected by both tragedies.
President John Dramani Mahama
will attend a service in memory of
the victims on Wednesday near the
site of the fire at Kwame Nkrumah
Circle, his office said in a statement.
The government said it has begun
to distribute relief materials,
including food, water and non-food
items to those hit.
"We have been able to identify a
total of 9 250 people who were
affected by the flood and fire, 1 125
houses were damaged while 67
people were hospitalised as of the
weekend," Red Cross disaster
management coordinator Francis
Obeng told AFP.
A final death toll and full
assessment of damages caused by
the disaster is expected in about a
month's time, he added.
UN agencies have been drafted in
to work with national bodies
helping those affected by the
tragedy, which Mahama described
as "catastrophic and almost
unprecedented".
A fire and explosion at the Ghana
Oil Company (GOIL) filling station
on Thursday killed scores of people
seeking shelter from torrential rains
that caused widespread flooding.
The fire is thought to have spread
from a nearby residence and
destroyed a nearby pharmacy and
several neighbouring buildings.
At least two days of heavy rains last
week left many suburbs submerged
and people stranded, with roads
blocked and cars swept away or
overturned by the flood waters.
Rainwater filled open drains
blocked with rubbish and waste,
causing them to overflow,
according to locals.

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