2 Naval officers drown whilst chasing illegal miners
Two soldiers of the Western Naval Command drowned in the River Pra during an operation by a combined police/military team to flush out illegal gold miners, popularly referred to as ‘galamsey’ operators, at Sekyere-Krobo on Saturday.
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The deceased have been identified as Leading Seaman (LS) Frederick Obed Mensah and Able Seaman (AB) Moses Yao Nkyi.
The two soldiers, who were at Sekyere-Krobo in the Wassa West District in the Western Region, were about to enter a canoe to join their colleagues on a Naval boat on a special operation on the River Pra when the incident happened.
AB Nkyi was able to enter the canoe without problem, but when LS Mensah attempted to enter the canoe, he slipped and fell into the river, with the canoe capsising in the process.
When AB Nkyi attempted to save his colleague, he also fell into the river and both of them drowned.
Both soldiers were not wearing life jackets at the time of the incident.
The incident is said to have occurred at a section of the river which had become very muddy because of galamsey activities, a situation which made it difficult for the soldiers to swim or come out immediately, since their boots initially got stuck in the mud.
The traditional authorities had to perform some rituals, including the pouring of libation, before the bodies of the deceased were retrieved, with the assistance of the local people, and deposited at the Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital.
The latest operation was in response to a directive by the Western Regional Security Council (REGSEC) after the illegal miners had blocked a portion of the River Pra at Sekyere-Haiman, an action which prevented water from flowing into the intake area of the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) at Bosomase and Daboase.
In an interview, the Western Regional Police Commander, Mr R. Moses Ninson, said the two soldiers were among a group trying to cross the river to the operational areas of the illegal miners.
The GWCL said the blockage of the River Pra by the illegal miners cost the company additional operational cost of GHc35,000 a week.
This is because the company has to engage labourers to clear the deep part of the intake for it to accumulate water before treatment.
Meanwhile, a senior official of the company has indicated that such an approach is not sustainable.
“Currently, we employ the services of 20 women and others to remove the waste to enable water to flow into the intake slowly before we can treat it,” he said.
The problem, according to the Western Regional Director of the GWCL, Mr Daniel Muomaalah, had been caused by illegal mining activities in the river.
In an effort to solve the problem, the REGSEC authorised the security agencies to embark on the operation to flush out the illegal miners.
Story by Kwame Asiedu Marfo & Moses Dotse Aklorbortu