The Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, was forced to abruptly cut short his speech during the launch of the Responsible Cooperative Mining and Skills Development program, aimed at tackling illegal mining at Obuasi on Friday, August 6, 2025.

Midway through addressing participants, Dr Amoakohene paused and announced, “I have an emergency, and I need to leave right away with the MCE to attend to this,” before swiftly exiting the venue.

Sources close to the regional administration say the sudden departure is linked to a developing situation involving a missing Ghana Air Force helicopter.

According to a statement issued by the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), a Z-9 military helicopter carrying eight people lost radar contact after taking off from Accra on Tuesday morning, en route to Obuasi in the Ashanti Region.

The aircraft, which departed the capital at 9:12 AM, was carrying three crew members and five passengers.

“All efforts are being made to establish contact,” the statement from the GAF noted, adding that search and rescue operations were underway.

As of Wednesday afternoon, authorities had yet to locate the helicopter or determine the condition of those on board.

JKB/AE

Meanwhile, watch the trailer to GhanaWeb’s yet-to-air documentary on teenage girls and how fish is stealing their futures below: