Victims of the Appiatse explosion which occurred last year, who sustained various degrees of injuries after the unfortunate incident have been left to foot their own bills.
Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Appiatse Reconstruction Committee, Mr Thywill Quarshie, who disclosed this to the media, said the development is as a result of lack of funds to support the victims.
“We have asked the victims to foot their own medical bills with the hope of refunding when we get support from the public,” he stated.
Highlighting more challenges affecting the people of Appiatse, he noted that feeding has become a great concern.
“Our warehouse is also empty, feeding the people of Appiatse is a major worry. School children who lost their parents in the incident are out of school” he said.
“Now our only hope is that next academic year, we have to go for the US $10,000 donated by the workers of Future Global Resources Bogoso Prestea Mine to the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipal Assembly as seed money to set up an endowment fund to cater for the educational needs of children of parents or guardians whose livelihoods were affected by the Appiatse explosion,” he added.
However, he expressed appreciation to the government, organisations, philanthropists, and individuals who have supported them since the unfortunate incident struck the community and further appealed for more support to help restore the lives of the victims.
Background
Disaster struck the Appiatse township in the Prestea Huni Valley Municipal Assembly, on 20 January 2022, after a motorbike rider transporting explosives for a gold mine in Bogoso unfortunately went under a truck, causing an explosion.
Police say a preliminary investigation has established that a truck filled with explosives for mining collided with a motorcycle, resulting in the explosion at Bogoso-Appiatse, a village 300 kilometers west of Accra. Authorities say 500 buildings were destroyed in the explosion, displacing over 500 people.
The disaster turned lives in the community around since some persons lost their relatives, others had to cancel weddings, jobs were destroyed, etc.
About thirteen (13) people are reported to have died from the incident, with several others sustaining different degrees of injuries. A Government delegation, led by the Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Mamamudu Bawumia, visited the community shortly after the incident, and committed to settle the medical bills of all the injured.
The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, following investigations into the matter, imposed a fine of Six Million US Dollars (US$6,000,000.00) on Maxxam Ghana Limited, the company responsible for the transportation of the explosives.
Government, also, promised to reconstruct the Appiatse community into a modern, green and sustainable community as a model for rural development. As a result, an Appiatse Support Fund was established to, among others, support the reconstruction of the community, while temporary accommodation was provided for the victims of the incident.
Speaking on the state of the project, Mr Thywill Quarshie noted that completion of the initial phase of constructing 124 housing units for the victims of Appiatse, a town in the Western Region that suffered from anexplosion, is fast approaching.