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Fire disaster averted at new Court Complex

Fire disaster averted at new Court Complex

The timely intervention of the internal security and some staff members of the new Court Complex yesterday prevented fire that had started on the first floor of the complex from spreading to other parts of the building.

The fire, which started around 12:30 p.m., reportedly burnt a water pump in the facility, leaving a clue that it might have started from there. 

No damage was done, all due to the swift response to the call for help by the GNFS.

The acting Public Relations Officer of the GNFS, Divisional Officer (DO) II Timothy Osafo-Affum, told the Daily Graphic that the GNFS received a distress call about 12:30 p.m. and got to the scene in less than 10 minutes, by which time the fire had been controlled by the staff of the facility.

He said the firemen helped to totally put out the fire but added that the immediate cause of the fire could not be established.

No response from staff

When the Daily Graphic arrived on the premises of the Court Complex around 12:50 p.m., business had returned to normal.

The internal security and other staff of the facility were tight-lipped on the issue, saying that nothing serious happened and that it was a mere spark that did not warrant public attention.

Pieces of information picked by the Daily Graphic indicated that some judges and staff of the Judicial Service, including the Judicial Secretary, Mr Justice Alex B. Opoku-Acheampong, were among the key personalities who had rushed to the complex to salvage the situation.

Media gagged 

Media personnel who were in the complex to observe proceedings at some of the courts were reportedly prevented from taking pictures.

One of the journalists, who was an eyewitness, said they were observing proceedings on the third floor of the complex when they noticed flames and heard accompanying explosive sounds from the ground floor.

“We were asked to go out through a different exit, while some officials went to the ground floor and locked it. The Presiding Judge was reading the judgement in a case but it was truncated, since everyone had to run for his or her life,” he said.

The Court Complex

The Court Complex was inaugurated on October 9, 2015 by President John Mahama.      

The late President John Evans Atta Mills cut the sod for the construction of the complex to replace the dilapidated courts known as the Cocoa Affairs Court.

The complex comprises 42 courtrooms, made up of 10 land courts, 10 commercial courts, six criminal courts, six general jurisdiction courts, three divorce and matrimonial courts, two financial and economic courts, two human rights courts, two labour courts and a probate and administration court.

 The complex has banking facilities, a cafeteria, a 300-seater auditorium, a library, a business centre and a media centre.

A press briefing room, executive offices for the Attorney-General and police prosecutors and a data centre are also contained in the facility.

 

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