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A fire and explosion at
the Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) filling station killed scores of people seeking
shelter from torrential rains that caused widespread flooding ©Fati Braimah
(AFP)
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Flags flew at half-mast in Ghana on Monday as three days of
mourning began to honour more than 150 killed in a petrol station fire during
heavy flooding in the capital, Accra.
The government asked the
public to wear black as a mark of respect to those who died, as the Red Cross
said that 9,250 people have been affected by both tragedies.
President John Dramani
Mahama will attend a service in memory of the victims on Wednesday near the
site of the fire at Kwame Nkrumah Circle, his office said in a statement.
The government said it
has begun to distribute relief materials, including food, water and non-food
items to those hit.
AFP report continues:
"We have been able
to identify a total of 9,250 people who were affected by the flood and fire,
1,125 houses were damaged while 67 people were hospitalized as of the
weekend," Red Cross disaster management coordinator Francis Obeng told
AFP.
A final death toll and
full assessment of damages caused by the disaster is expected in about a
month's time, he added.
UN agencies have been drafted
in to work with national bodies helping those affected by the tragedy, which
Mahama described as "catastrophic and almost unprecedented".
A fire and explosion at
the Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) filling station on Thursday killed scores of
people seeking shelter from torrential rains that caused widespread flooding.
The fire is thought to
have spread from a nearby residence and destroyed a nearby pharmacy and several
neighbouring buildings.
At least two days of
heavy rains last week left many suburbs submerged and people stranded, with
roads blocked and cars swept away or overturned by the flood waters.
Rainwater filled open
drains blocked with rubbish and waste, causing them to overflow, according to
locals.
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