The National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and security officials have moved in to rescue individuals who have been affected by floods.
A downpour which started around 10:30 pm on Monday and continued till the early hours of Tuesday saw many houses submerged and properties destroyed.
Others were also trapped in their houses and cars.
Soldiers from the 48 Engineers Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) were deployed to some areas to manage the situation, following the heavy downpour.
The Public Relations Officer of NADMO, George Ayisi, assured the public that the team is doing everything possible to ensure the safety of everyone.
“We have deployed a team to Alajo, Tetegu STC junction, and Cantonments. At Cantonments, for instance, 48 Engineers team have also joined. Some people had been trapped in their homes, and so our men had to go and rescue them,” he revealed.
He urged all individuals who find themselves in such situations to reach out to NADMO toll-free on 112 or call 0302964884.
“We work in partnership with stakeholder agencies such as GMet (Ghana Meteorological Agency), which gives us the updates, 48 Engineers, and the Ambulance service, amongst others. We have had preparatory works and simulation exercises for some of these happenings. When anyone reaches out to us, we will contact and deploy our men to come to their aid.
“For now, we are focusing on rescuing victims. When we are through with that, we will assess the situation and determine how we will go about providing relief items,” he said on Citi TV, monitored by theghanareport.com.
Background
Accra has been flooded for the second time in four days.
The rain that lasted for almost eight hours has caused traffic congestion on major roads in the capital.
As the deluge continued, Ghanaians flocked to social media to share videos of flooded areas, where the rains had caused massive havoc.
Affected places in the capital include Kaneshie, Adabraka, Weija, Teshie, Kwame Nkrumah Circle, Dansoman, Tse Addo, and Tesano.
The previous incident on Saturday night saw a similar situation where many were left counting their losses after the downpour.
Meanwhile, the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) has already forecast three further bouts of heavy rain in the south by the end of June.
The phenomenon is likely to occur because the rainy season’s peak is nearing, according to Nana Kofi Opoku, the Principal Meteorologist at GMET’s Research and Applied Meteorological Department.
“When we look at climatology and the forecast that we released for the March, April, May, and June season, it looks like we have on average, three more such incidents to occur,” he said.
Destruction by floods
Many lives have been lost and properties destroyed due to the annual floods.
In 2011, floods in the country resulted in the death of more than 30 people nationwide, with 15 victims in Accra.
In 2015, 159 people were confirmed dead from a twin disaster of floods and fire explosion.
It was one of the deadliest catastrophes to befall the country, leading to days of mourning as families lost their loved ones.
A fire explosion occurred after several hours of rain and flooding around the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange enclave.
In June 2020, a man died trying to warn neighbours about flooding at Odawna in Accra.
A resident explained that the deceased was trying to salvage some items during the flooding when he was electrocuted.
At Achimota, a bus was trapped in a storm drain. It was not carrying passengers. At least 20 persons were rescued from that incident after a downpour that lasted hours.
Flooding in Accra has also killed people and displaced people in the city in 1995, 1997, 2001, and 2010.