No Fewer Than Six Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghana Armed Forces Enlistment Event

No fewer than six individuals have lost their lives during a crowd crush at a military recruitment event held in a stadium in the West African nation.

The Wednesday's "tragic" incident appeared to have been triggered by "an unexpected surge of applicants who breached security protocols and rushed into the entrances," stated a statement from Ghana's armed forces.

Twenty-two additional individuals were hurt, including 5 who remain in serious state.

A large crowd had gathered at El-Wak stadium, in the main city, Accra, with the aspiration of enlisting in the armed forces.

Ghana has a rate of joblessness among young people of approximately thirty-two percent, the most recent official data show, and such recruitment events typically attract large crowds and frequently result in disorderly situations.

The closing date to apply for this event was extended by a week to allow for more applicants, as a number had faced difficulties in the process.

Military representative Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin said the stampede occurred ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.

The nation's leader John Mahama has gone to see the injured in medical care.

Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has now started.