3 Crash To Death In Krobo

Barely three days after seven Catholic Parishioners perished in a gory accident at Asitey, along the Krobo Odumase-Oterkpolu road in the Eastern Region, another fatal accident was reported on Tuesday night at virtually the same area, this time claiming the lives of three out of four passengers in a truck.

Confirming the incident, the Public Relations Officer of the Eastern Regional Police Command, DSP Ebenezer Tetteh, said a Kia Mighty Truck, with Registration Number AW 350-Z, and loaded with 70 bags of salt from Ada in the Greater Accra Region, was heading to Akanteng in the Upper Manya Krobo district of the Eastern, when it veered into a valley by the side of the road.

He gave the names of the four passengers in the truck as Gazo Michael (driver), 38, Charles Okutu, 32, Michael, 24, and Lamptey, (30).

According to DSP Tetteh, the accident occurred at a spot near Ayemesu, a village along the same stretch, as the vehicle was descending a steep hill. The deceased were identified as Gazo Michael (driver), Lamptey and Michael (both mates).

The bodies of the three deceased persons have been deposited at the Atua Government Hospital, while Charles Okutu, the only survivor, is currently receiving treatment at the St. Martins De Porres Hospital at Agormanya.

Meanwhile, the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has recommended to the Ghana Highways Authority to improve safety management infrastructure on that road to curb the rising spate of fatalities.

The Authority wants crash barriers and warning signs erected, particularly at the steep, sharp curve of the Asitey junction, which is currently gaining notoriety as the deadliest road portion in the Eastern Region.

It is recalled that on June 15, 2019, around 7pm a Volta River Authority (VRA) bus, with registration number GV 2497-14, carrying 61 parishioners of the Santa Barbara Catholic Church in Akosombo, was involved in fatal accident while returning from a funeral at Akim Oda.

Seven of the passengers died on the spot, while 54 others sustained various degrees of life-threatening injuries. The survivors included a 6-month-old baby boy and his mother.

By Bennett Akuaku, Odumase-Krobo