17 People Die And 500 Houses Destroyed As Truck Carrying Explosives Crashes Into Motorcycle

No fewer than 17 people have been confirmed dead while several others were left injured when a truck carrying explosives to a gold mine in western Ghana collided with a motorcycle, setting off an explosion that flattened a rural community.

Gatekeepers News reports that hundreds of buildings were reduced to piles of wood as videos from local media shows rubble and twisted metal, and dead bodies crumpled on the ground surrounded by debris after the blast that occurred on Thursday in Apiate, a settlement between the towns of Bogoso and Bawdie.

Police said the motorcycle fell under a truck owned by a company called Maxam that was transporting explosives to the Chirano gold mine, run by Toronto-based Kinross Gold Corporation.

Kinross has confirmed the incident and said it was monitoring the situation and rescue efforts.

The drone footage of the aftermath of the explosion in Apiate-Bogoso, in the Western region of Ghana, hovers over the giant crater in the dirt road, as well as two large, demolished buildings. Rescue vehicles and onlookers mill around the scene.

Seji Saji Amedonu, deputy director-general of the National Disaster Management Organisation said around 500 buildings were destroyed and that rescue efforts were still underway.

The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources said in a statement that is investigating the cause of the blast and whether the companies involved followed regulations covering transportation of explosives.

Survivors in critical condition were being taken to medical facilities in the capital Accra.