The Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mubarak, has disclosed that recent flooding incidents across the country have claimed 29 lives, with six people still missing.
Speaking before Parliament’s Public Assurance Committee, Mr Mubarak said the deaths were recorded following separate flood disasters in the Greater Accra, Central and Volta regions.
According to him, the Central Region recorded one of the most devastating incidents a week before the June 29 floods in Accra, resulting in significant loss of lives and destruction of property.
“Per the records we have, if you recollect, the Central Region, a week before June 29, recorded its biggest disaster where we lost 18 people and about 58 houses collapsed,” he said.
The Interior Minister noted that the June 29 flooding incident in Accra also claimed 12 lives, with several others initially reported missing.
“For the June 29 incident in Accra, the records we have show that 12 people lost their lives and seven were missing.
“I was told yesterday that a body was found, so if that person is confirmed dead, it brings the death toll to 13 and reduces the number of missing persons to six,” he stated.
Mr Mubarak added that the Volta Region recorded four deaths as a result of flooding, bringing the total number of fatalities nationwide to 29.
He said government agencies activated emergency response measures, including the preparation of temporary shelters to accommodate displaced residents.
However, the Minister revealed that despite the availability of shelters, many affected persons preferred to remain within their communities.
“People did not want to go to the shelters. What they wanted were relief items so they could remain in their communities,” he explained.
According to him, the Ministry of Gender identified three shelters with the capacity to accommodate about 200 displaced persons, while an additional facility at Ashaiman could accommodate up to 1,000 people.
He added that arrangements were also made to provide extra mattresses and convert some public offices into temporary accommodation if the need arose.
Mr Mubarak further disclosed that the National Security Secretariat had also made available a facility capable of accommodating about 300 displaced persons as part of the government’s emergency response plan.
