Another Kintampo crash claims two lives with dozens injured
Two passengers have been killed and several others wounded in a freak accident on the Kintampo-Tamale road in the Bono East region.
The accident occurred at about 5 pm on Tuesday at Soronoase after a tractor driver lost control and crashed into a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter full-size van.
The commercial vehicle was heading to Sunyani from Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region.
“A tyre of the tractor ahead came off and collided with the bus, whose driver tried unsuccessfully to manoeuvre out of its trajectory,” said a victim.
Two passengers died on the spot and the injured were rushed to the Holy Family Hospital in Techiman and the Kintampo Municipal Hospital.
Kintampo-Tamale road accidents
The Kintampo-Tamale highway is notorious for fatal crashes.
It has claimed hundreds of lives and maimed several others over the years.
It connects the South and the North part of the country and also serves at the main route for travellers to Burkina Faso.
A dual-carriage upgrade of the major highways connecting Accra to Ghana’s neighbouring countries will cut road carnage by more than half, the Motor Traffic and Transport Department had advised.
The Head of Education, Research and Training at the MTTD of the Ghana Police Service, Superintendent Alex Obeng, who made the suggestion, insisted that the country had no choice but to invest in the road expansion.
Authorities have however failed to implement the suggestion.
35 Passengers Burnt Beyond Recognition
In March 2019, about 35 victims of were burnt beyond recognition after a fatal accident at Amoma Nkwanta in the Kintampo South District of the Bono East Region.
The accident claimed 60 lives.
The accident happened as a result of a head-on collision between a Yutong bus and a 207 Sprinter minibus, in the early hours of Monday, March 9, 2020, at about 4 am.
The Yutong bus was carrying pepper from Tamale, while Sprinter was heading to Tamale. A spark resulted in a raging fire that engulfed the two vehicles.
The Kintampo accident file in the last three years
October 2020: A fatal accident on the Kintampo-Techiman highway left one person dead and fifteen others with life-threatening injuries.
The accident involved a Toyota Hiace Bus with registration number AS 8030-20.
The vehicle which had seventeen (17) occupants including the driver were traveling from Techiman to Tatale in the Northern Region.
According to the survivors, the driver was speeding when the accident occurred.
They said upon reaching the Amomankwanta and Krutakyi stretch which is an accident-prone zone, the rear tyre of the bus burst, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
October 2020: The National Democratic Congress’ Bono East Deputy Regional Youth Organiser, Isaac Kojo Nsiah, died in a bloody crash on the same highway.
Reports had it that he was on the pick-truck with three others who survived the carnage after their vehicle collided with an articulator truck loaded with fertilizer.
His death came barely two months to the general elections.
September 2020: An accident claimed eight lives at Tuobodom on the Techiman-Kintampo highway.
The accident involves a Mercedes Benz truck with the registration number AS 9554G and a taxi cab with the registration number BA 1356 P.
The driver of the truck reportedly lost control and veered into the lane of the oncoming taxi cab resulting in the collision.
August 2020: A police met his untimely death when a DAF cargo truck with registration number 11 JP 9534 fell on him.
Sgt Solomon Amuure, 42, was on official duty when the incident occurred.
22 February 2020: Two women and a pregnant mother died on the Kintampo road when the vehicle they were travelling on crashed into a cargo truck carrying logs.
7 January 2020: Four family members died in an accident, involving a Mercedes Benz and a Yutong bus in the Kintampo Municipality. The 65-year-old driver and his newly married wife, son and brother died instantly.
4 November 2019; A two-year-old girl and a man, identified only as Michael, were killed in an accident in the Kintampo South District of the Bono East Region.
13 September 2019: Another gory accident on the Techiman-Kintampo highway at Tuobodom in the Bono East region claimed eight lives.
Road fatalities in 2020
Road traffic fatalities in 2020 were 2,589 representing a 13% rise compared to the 2,284 registered in 2019.
A total of 14, 886 road accidents were reported across the 16 regions, which was 7% higher than the 13, 877 for 2019.
Out of this, 25, 152 vehicles were involved, a 10% increase from the 22, 789 in the previous year.
Victims who suffered various forms of injuries totalled 15, 517, a 13% rise from 13, 677 just a year ago.
Pedestrian knockdowns totalled 2,728, with 720 of the incidents resulting in deaths. This was a reduction of 9% from the 2,283 with 740 deaths received in 2019.
Unlike previous years, motorcycles were involved in the most fatalities, with 1,056 deaths and 4,684 injuries from 5,684 motorcycle crashes.
A year before, there were 4,643 motorcycle accidents which contributed to 732 deaths and 3,474 injuries.
This shows a 44% rise in motorcycle deaths from 2019 to 2020.
Motorcycle classification comprises motorcycles (two-, three-, and four-wheeled), bicycles and handcarts.
A total of 964 were lost and 7,595 injuries on account of 9, 356 commercial vehicle accidents.
This represented a 10% rise in the number of vehicles involved from 8,489 in the previous year.
Bus, minibus, truck and taxi are some vehicles classified for commercial use.
Private vehicles had the highest number of carnage of 10,112 vehicles, up by 5% from the 9, 657 in 2019.
Out of this came the least fatalities and injuries of 569 and 3,240 respectively.
Minibus, saloon, SUV/4×4, truck, and government cars fall under this category.
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