3 Drown As Boat Capsizes On Volta Lake
Three people have reportedly died in the Volta Lake at Yeji in the Bono East Region.
According to reports, the deceased persons from Makango in the Savanna Region missed the ferry to Yeji and decided to travel by boat.
However, the boat capsized during a storm on the river leading to their demise.
Information gathered revealed a search team was dispatched to look for the bodies.
Meanwhile, the boat operator, Jacob Adinortey, who survived, is currently in police custody assisting with investigations.
Six people drowned in the last three weeks
This adds to the number of drowning-related deaths reported in the last three weeks.
Two teenage siblings and their friend also drowned in the White Volta River at Naaga, a community in the Kassena Nankana Municipality in the Upper East Region.
The unfortunate incident happened around 3 pm on Saturday, April 15, 2023.
The deceased, two boys and one girl, were among eight teenagers between the ages of 11 and 17 who had gone to wash mangoes and swim in the river.
They reportedly went to get mango fruits from a big mango tree close to the river in the community since they were not allowed to take mangoes belonging to neighbours in the area.
After successfully plucking the mangoes, they decided to go into the river to wash the fruits.
In the process, they all jumped into the river to swim.
Unfortunately, they drifted towards the deep part of the river.
Five of them managed to swim back to the riverside, but the river carried away three others.
Hundreds of deaths are recorded yearly due to drowning.
Drowning trends
In a related development, a report released by researchers from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Accra on Friday, February 11, 2023, has revealed that Ghana recorded 1449 drowning cases in the last three years.
According to the research study, the total number of drowning cases recorded include 1,142 fatal cases, 305 non-fatal cases and two unknown cases.
Furthermore, the result of the research study also indicated a high number of males involved in both fatal and non-fatal drowning cases, which stood at 1,185 as against 231 for females.
It adds that drowning frequently occurred among males, children and young adults.
The research was conducted in partnership with the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Foundation with funding from the Bloomberg Philanthropies in 52 coastal, inland water and dry districts.