19 Perish in accident

All the 19 passengers of a Hyundai mini bus travelling from Bompata to Kumasi died on the spot when the bus collided headlong with a Man Diesel tanker at Ejisu-Besiase in the Ashanti Region in the early hours of yesterday.

The bodies of the dead, which included two pregnant women, the driver of the bus and his mate, have been deposited at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital for autopsy.

The driver of the tanker, Adama Tabiri, 52, and his mate, known only as Baba, however, escaped unhurt and are in custody at the Ejisu Police Station to assist in investigations into the accident.

Eyewitness accounts say part of the disfigured bodies of the victims had stuck in the mangled mini bus with registration number AS 4870 N.

Some of the victims who have been identified are Kwame Basta, the driver, Kofi Boateng, his mate, Wofa Kwaku, Yaa Pokuaa and Akosua Duku. The others are Simon Boadi, 24, Victor Saba Jnr, and Kwame Ohene, all workers of Amansie Resolute Limited, a mining company at Manso Nkran.

A total amount of ?5,820,000, which was found with the victims, has been deposited at the Ejisu Police Station.

An angry mob which went to the scene of the accident threatened to set the tanker ablaze but they were prevented from doing so by the police.

Briefing the Graphic on the incident, the Ejisu District Commander, Superintendent Ali Gariba, said around 5 a. m. yesterday, the tanker driver, Adama Tabiri, walked to the charge office to report that his vehicle had been involved in an accident at the outskirts of Ejisu.

He said when a team of policemen was dispatched to the scene to investigate, it found the 19 bodies scattered on the road.

The police, he said, arranged to deposit the bodies at the Komfo Anokye Hospital morgue for autopsy.

He said the police placed the tanker driver in custody for further investigations and has also deployed some personnel at the scene of the accident to guard the tanker to prevent the angry mob from setting it ablaze.

In an interview with the tanker driver, he said the accident occurred while he was on his way to Tema to cart petroleum products.

He said at the outskirts of Ejisu, a Nissan Pajero overtook his vehicle and the driver applied the brakes suddenly in front of a tractor that he was following to avoid colliding with an oncoming car.

Tabiri said to avoid hitting the tractor, he swerved into the other lane and in the process crashed into the Hyundai mini bus.

He said when he saw the havoc, he reported it to the police at Ejisu.