Eight passengers are reported dead in a horrific accident at Kpong stretch of the Akosombo to Tema Highway in the Eastern region on New Year’s Eve.

At least eight (8) other passengers said to be in critical condition were on admission at Akuse and St. Martins de Porres Hospital. However, 5 have been referred.

The accident according to Emmanuel Tetteh Leyla, a freelance Journalist in the area, occurred when a speeding Sprinter Bus with registration Number GN 8209-15 carrying 16 passengers rammed into a faulty stationary Tipper Truck with registration GN 2064-14 at the Kpong portion of the Akosombo to Tema motorway.

Eight passengers died on the spot while the rest sustained life-threatening injuries.

Personnel of the Ghana National Fire Service and Police rushed to the scene to extricate the victims to St. Martin de Porres Hospital, Agormanya.

Simon Kweku Tetteh, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Lower Manya Krobo who was at the scene described the accident as unfortunate.

The MCE promised to provide medical care to the victims whose families were yet to be known.

As of the end of August 2020, a total of 9,205 road crashes had been recorded in Ghana. These involved 15,459 vehicles, resulting in 1,585 deaths, according to Mrs. May Obiri-Yeboah, the Director-General, National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), said on Saturday.

The situation, she said, represented a relative increase same period of last year with a 0.34 percent rise in the number of crashes, a 2.9 percent increase in the number of vehicles involved, a 0.13 percent increase in deaths, and a 1.26 percent increase in injury cases.

However, there was a 17.61 percent reduction in pedestrian knockdowns.

Source: Obed Ansah – www.myghanamedia / Brytfm (Eastern Region)