A rain-triggered landslide has killed a 20-month-old baby at Tantri, a suburb of Cape Coast in the Central region, while injuring three other women and destroying homes.
This follows a torrential rainfall on Friday, June 19, leading to a building collapse around 4:45 p.m. after a section of a nearby hillside gave way, sending debris crashing onto three structures situated below the slope.
The victims, Elizabeth Kyerede, 43, Maame Badua, 25, Ella, 17, and little Hanson Mensah, aged 20 months were trapped beneath the rubble and had to be rescued by residents.
They were taken to the Ewim Polyclinic for treatment, but Hanson was pronounced dead on arrival.
Ella, who suffered a severe head injury, was later transferred to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital for further medical attention.
Head of the family, Richard Joachim, speaking to Graphic Online described the incident as unprecedented in the area, noting that residents had never experienced a mudslide of such magnitude before.
According to him, the four victims had gathered in one room during the heavy rains when the hillside suddenly collapsed onto the building.
He explained that other relatives occupying nearby rooms were alerted by a loud crashing sound and rushed outside, only to discover that portions of the structure had been buried under mud and debris.
Residents immediately launched a rescue effort and transported the victims to the health facility.
Mr Joachim indicated that although three buildings were affected, the remaining two structures fortunately had no occupants at the time of the incident.
Personnel from the Ghana National Fire Service later arrived at the scene to assist with emergency response efforts, while the Cape Coast Metropolitan Chief Executive, George Justice Arthur, visited the bereaved family to offer his sympathies.
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