A family of six have reportedly been swept away by floods at Esreso, a town near the Ashanti Regional capital of Kumasi. The six, according to reports, met the unfortunate fate at about 1am on Friday dawn following a heavy downpour the previous night. Graphic.com.gh reported that the family were trying to cross the Ankonim river which had overflowed its banks and blocked the only access to residential areas.
Unfortunately for them, the strong currents swept them away in their vehicle when they tried to cross. So far, the bodies of five out of the six family members have been found with the remaining person still missing and also feared dead. Joy News’ Erastus Asare Donkor reported that the family was trapped in their saloon car for many hours before rescue workers arrived. “Police are here with a pickup vehicle but there are no rescue workers and there are no heavy equipment to remove the [trapped] vehicle. I understand the fire service team came here but left,” he described the scene before the bodies were retrieved. The family were members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses working on a new Kingdom Hall [church complex] in the area.
This is the second time in about two months that floods have caused such deaths in Kumasi. It will be recalled that a heavy downpour in June killed four people at Asokore Mampong near Kumasi. According to reports, the victims were swept by flood waters and their bodies recovered the following day by officials of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).
