Three chiefs from Agona Kwamang in the Central Region and a driver died on the spot when a taxi cab they were travelling in ran into an abandoned articulator truck at Akyem Asafo near Apedwa on the Accra-Kumasi road Saturday morning.
The deceased have been identified as Nana Tobor – Kyidomhene, Nana Kwame Gyan – Abusuapanin and Nana Kwaku Mensah, Benkumhene.
A fourth chief, Dwaantoafohene who sustained serious injuries is on admission at the Suhum Government Hospital in the Eastern region.
Nhyira Fm’s Ohemeng Tawiah who chanced on the accident reports the deceased were travelling to Tepa in the Ashanti region to attend an engagement ceremony of a son of one of the chiefs.
Visibility was said to be poor as at 5:45 a.m Saturday, blurring the vision of the driver of the taxi cab. The cab rammed an broken down articulator truck in the middle of the road.
The taxi with registration GR 7393-10 has been damaged beyond repair after it rammed into the ‘abandoned’ Burkina Faso-bound articulated truck with registration 10 KK 1599.
Though the road has been cleared to allow free traffic flow, the abandoned articulator truck has been left to its fate, still posing a danger to other road users.
On 31st December 2010, five people died when a metal container slipped from a truck and fell on an Akyem Asafo – Suhum bound taxi cab. All the five occupants including the driver died on the spot.
The Eastern Regional Commander of the Police Motor, Traffic and Transport Unit is unhappy the absence of a recovery truck is thwarting efforts of the police to deal with abandoned and broken-down heavy duty trucks on that section of the main Kumasi-Accra road.
Superintendent James Sarfo Peprah said road carnage involving abandoned articulator and other heavy duty trucks can be prevented only when there are such services available to quickly clear them off the roads.
Story by: Ohemeng Tawiah, Nhyira Fm/Kumasi-Ghana