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Twenty of the 28 people recovered so far from the rubble of the collapsed building of the Church of Prosperity in Akyem Batabi in the Asene – Manso – Akroso district in the eastern region since the disaster struck last Tuesday have been declared dead.
They are made up of 10 males and 10 females.
Of the eight people who are alive, six of them have been treated and discharged from the Government Hospital of Oda while one of them is admitted to the same health center while the other survivor has been transferred to St. Dominic Hospital. in Akwatia for a health care treatment.
As of noon Thursday, more than half of the debris had been cleared.
The Director of Inspection at the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) Headquarters in Accra, Mr. Richard Amo Yartey, made this known at a press conference to update the media in Akyem Batabi on Thursday.
He said six bodies were recovered from the rubble last Tuesday, another 10 were recovered Wednesday and four were recovered Thursday, reports Samuel Kyei-Boateng of Graphic Online.
Mr. Lartey praised the rescue team, consisting of NADMO staff, the Ghana National Fire Service, the National Ambulance Service, the police and soldiers from the 48 Engineer Regiment and the Achiase Jungle Welfare School , as well as volunteers from neighboring communities for doing work in the search and rescue mission.
He was also grateful to Memphis Metropolitan Limited for abandoning their highway construction project and released two excavators and six dump trucks for the exercise.
Eastern Region Minister Eric Kwakye Darfour, who has been at the scene of the disaster since last Tuesday, praised the 37-year-old taxi driver from Oda, Kwabena Boahene, aka La Cote D ‘Ivoire, for spearheading the recovery from 28 people trapped under the collapsed building.
Mr. Darfour noted with concern that the unfinished five-story building was started in 1997 without the use of a professional property developer.
Instead, the property owner relied on cheap labor from inexperienced members of his church for the project, hence the disaster.
Therefore, he urged other real estate developers to employ qualified professionals and use quality materials for their buildings to help prevent a repeat of such disasters.
Mr. Padmore Kofi Okyere, the property owner’s uncle, acted as a spokesman for his nephew and expressed his deepest condolences for the bereaved families.
He stressed that although he is a prominent member of the church, he was unable to give the actual number of members in the church building at the time of the disaster.
Mr. Okyere, however, promised to update the Regional Minister after consulting with pastors and other prominent members of the church.
The property owner, who is the founder and leader of the Church of Prosperity, Prophet Isaac Ofori, also known as Akoa Issac, is currently very ill and traumatized by the disaster, Okyere said.
Mr. Darfour told him that the government would make a decision on the burial of the deceased and that at the appropriate time it would keep them informed.
The leader of the 48th Engineer Regiment, Lt. Col. Michael Kwame Ntim said that he and his men had been at the scene of the disaster for the past 48 hours and would remain there until the last person was recovered alive or dead.
He urged journalists to be prudent in their reporting so as not to create unnecessary tension.
For his part, Lt. Col. Peter Amoah, commander-in-chief of the Achiase Jungle Warfare school, said that he and his men had been at the scene of the disaster since October 20, 2020 to cordon off all undesirable items and maintain safety. .
He said they would continue to provide security when the other rescue mission teams leave the scene.
Asene-Manso-Akroso District Executive Director (DCE), Mr. Alex Incoom, urged relatives to help identify the dead people who had been recovered from the rubble.
The scene in the church premises was solemn with many people who lost their family members crying uncontrollably.
Akyem Aperade resident woman Ms Regina Tettey, who wept bitterly on Wednesday and Thursday upon realizing that her older sister, Vivian Tettey was among the dead, could not control her tears despite being comforted by friends.
He said that last Sunday, the sister sent her 10-year-old son to Aperade through a church member with the explanation that they were engaged in a three-day fast and prayers for the prophet Akoa Isaac, who was seriously ill. .
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