Skip to main content

Apiatse Explosion: How pregnant mother narrowly escaped death

 


A three-month pregnant woman who survived the Apiatse explosion Which killed more than 13 people, has shared chilling details of how she pulled through last Thursday’s tragic incident.

Grace Morgan, 32, witnessed the incident at first hand and said the explosion happened "very close to my shop along the main road. I'm surprised I didn't die..."

The victim, a mother of three, told the Ghana News Agency that she had returned from Kumasi Thursday morning and was around her shop when the truck collided with a tricycle and caught fire.

She said some men at the accident scene initially, "tried to douse the fire with water," but were unsuccessful.

Madam Morgan said after about "30 minutes" of unsuccessful attempts to extinguish the fire, she suggested that they used soapy water so, she decided to go back home for a detergent to make the water soapy.

The trader said a few minutes after she had moved away from the scene, the truck exploded.

All I heard was boom! All of a sudden I couldn't see anything. There was heavy dust everywhere. I saw someone run across me so I followed the person's direction not knowing what was happening.

Read also: Sale of Bogoso Prestea Mine: Affected permanent staff to be given severance packages

I was lost in my thoughts and when the dust settled, I saw people lying lifeless with some also injured. Immediately, I rushed home to check on my children not knowing I had been wounded in the process," she said.

Madam Morgan said: "I was surprised I didn't die because I was very close to the scene."

She said her shop was totally destroyed with GH¢3,000, which she had tied in a polythene bag to pay her suppliers, saying: "My only joy now is that my children are not hurt."

The pregnant woman is currently1 receiving treatment at the Apinto Government Hospital in Tarkwa in the Western Region.

She had a metal lodged in her left thigh and successfully underwent surgery on Friday, January 21, 2022, nurses at the Hospital told the GNA on Saturday.

The nurses said she was "in a stable condition" and had been put on "pain medication."

Some five other victims, including a four-year-old boy are on admission at the Apinto Government Hospital.

The boy sustained "minor cuts" on his face and other parts of his body, health officials at the Hospital said.

They said all the victims were responding to treatment.

Preliminary investigations by the Police have established that a vehicle transporting mining explosives from Tarkwa to the Chirano Gold Mines collided with a motorcycle resulting in the explosion at Appiatse, a farming community between Bogoso and Bawdie in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality of the Western Region.

Thirteen people were confirmed to have been killed in the disaster with 179 others injured. The Minerals Commission on Saturday shut down Maxam Ghana Limited, owners of the explosive truck, to pave way for investigations into the accident.

Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia who led a Government delegation to the community, said Government would collaborate with the State Housing Corporation and mining companies to construct temporary housing facilities for those displaced in the explosion.

The Vice President said Government would foot the medical bills of the injured and provide them the best of healthcare.

On behalf of Government, he donated GH¢200,000 to the bereaved families and presented assorted items, including mattresses, rice, cooking oil and toiletries to 300 displaced persons accommodated at the Bogoso Catholic Relief Centre.

Source: GNA

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Nestlé Ghana Limited Wins Overall Best Industrial Company Of The Year at 13th AGI Industry & Quality Awards

  Nestlé Ghana Limited has been honored with four prestigious awards at the 13th Association of Ghana Industry and Quality Awards ceremony. The event, held in an esteemed setting, gathered prominent figures from Ghana’s industrial sector. Amidst the anticipation, Nestlé Ghana emerged as one of the evening’s notable winners, securing accolades in several key categories. This recognition underscores Nestlé Ghana’s relentless pursuit of excellence and innovation, marking a significant milestone that highlights the company’s substantial contributions to the manufacturing industry in Ghana. Nestlé Ghana's exceptional performance was acknowledged with the following awards: Overall Best National Quality Award, Diamond Category (Food) Overall Best Practices in Sustainable Manufacturing Best Company (Food Sector) Overall Industrial Company of the Year, affirming its status as a leader not only within the food sector but also across Ghana's entire industrial landscape. This success is a ...

Anglogold Ashanti Obuasi Mine tops 2024 Sustainability & Social Investment Awards

 AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine has confirmed its status as sustainability champions by sweeping nine awards, the most won by a company at the 2024 Sustainability & Social Investment Awards (SSI) held at Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra. The feat comes on the heels of a dominant performance in last year's event where AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine swept seven awards. The SSI Awards organised by Ianmatsun Global Services recognizes the most outstanding sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives in the country and beyond as well as the best teams and individuals who brought them to life. This year's event, which was the 8th edition, was under the theme "Climate Action Now: Accelerating Decarbonization and Building Resilience". The awards won by AngloGold Ashanti on the night include SSI Company of the Year, Best Company in Women Empowerment (project), SSI Company of the Year ( Environment), Best Co...

Zoomlion Advocates Community & Gender inclusive waste management for Climate Action at COP 29

 Africa's waste management giant, Zoomlion Ghana Limited has advocated for an integrated approach to waste management that considers the interest of community members, women and vulnerable groups. James Deku, a Communications Officer of Zoomlion Ghana Limited made this call at the 29th session of the Conference Of Parties (COP 29) of the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) at Azerbaijan, Baku whiles speaking on the topic "Community-Driven and Gender Inclusive approaches to waste management for Climate Action ". He said the waste sector is a major contributor of methane emissions which is a potent greenhouse gas causing climate change hence the need to manage waste in a manner that considers the interest of all stakeholders. Zoomlion's waste management model is designed and operated in a manner that considers the interest of all stakeholders. Through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, local authorities engage community members in clea...