WHO presents emergency trauma kits to Apiate disaster victims
The Country Office of the World Health Organization, (WHO) has presented assorted medical supplies and trauma kits to the Western Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service to better manage the Apiate explosion disaster.
The medical supplies included 80 rolls of cotton wool, 452 pieces of gauze bandage, 160 packs of plaster, pleural drainage systems and 400 closed wound suction units.
The rest are sutures, surgical drainage and plaster casting.
Dr Rafiq Okine, on behalf of the Country Representative of the WHO, said the much needed medical supplies were to support the management of all forms of injuries, including surgical operations for affected Apiate victims, receiving treatment in the various hospitals in the Region.
He said, “I also wish to extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost their love ones on last Thursday’s tragic incident in Bogoso-Appiatse.”
So far, two persons have been airlifted to Accra for treatment, four critically ill transferred to the Effia-Nkwanta Government hospital in Takoradi while 31 cases are currently being managed at the Tarkwa Government hospital, according to Dr Yaw Yeboah, the Regional Health Director.
He expressed gratitude to the medical staff at the hospital for their swiftness in managing such a huge national catastrophe, which had helped save many more lives.
Dr Yeboah noted how such emergencies always put a strain on resources for routine clinical duties and lauded the emergency response from all angles to control the situation.
“We appreciate how people have responded to our request for blood and supported the exercise but there is still the need for such essential commodity.”
Dr Yeboah, therefore, encouraged the public to assist in that direction for optimum health care benefits.
The incident at Apiate occurred last Thursday, January 20, 2022, when a truck owned by Maxam Ghana Limited conveying explosives allegedly collided with a motorcycle causing a massive explosion, which killed 13 people, injured 179 and destroyed 31 houses.
Vice President Bawumia Friday led a government delegation to the community and commiserated with the bereaved families and the injured.
He said the government would take care of the medical bills of the injured while efforts were ongoing to rehabilitate and rebuild temporary houses for those affected.
The Vice President, on behalf of the government, donated GH¢200,000 to the bereaved families for their upkeep and presented assorted items, including mattresses, rice, cooking oil, and toiletries to over 300 persons displaced by the explosion.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, has directed the Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission to interdict the Chief Inspector of Mines, Mr Kofi Adjei, over the Apiate explosion.
The Minister also asked the Minerals Commission to suspend the registration of Maxam Company Limited with the Minerals Commission, thereby precluding the company from the manufacture, transportation, and/or supply of explosives for mining operations.
Source: GNA