‘I heard a big bang’: Woman, 2 others escape death after huge billboard crashes car

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A Kumasi woman is lucky to be alive after a huge billboard fell on top of a car she boarded at Afful-Nkwanta, on the Kumasi-Accra highway.

The woman, who is in her late 30s, suffered a minor injury after the signage smashed onto the front of a Toyota Corolla car near the Anloga Junction traffic light at about 21.00GMT on Thursday.

The driver, one Amoah, and one young lady also sustained various degrees of injuries and were rushed to the Anwiam Clinic, a health facility nearby.

Images from the scene show a red Toyota Corolla vehicle crashed by the billboard, with its windscreen shattered and glass strewn across the road. No other cars were hit.

The victim, identified as Mama Pat, said she was returning from church when the incident happened amidst rains.

“We were returning from church when the rains set in amidst storms. As the driver drove along we heard a big bang. I forcibly opened the window and discovered we have been trapped. I was rescued by the residents as they called the emergency response services. I sustained minor injuries,” she said.

The incident caused a heavy vehicular traffic on the stretch. Eyewitnesses say it took close to an hour before the trapped victims were rescued.

They have accused the Ghana Fire Service and the police of poor emergency services.

They are, however, calling on authorities to launch a crackdown on illegal billboards and sign posts dotted in the Ashanti Regional capital.

Rescue team

Firefighters and the police who were at the scene had a hectic time rescuing the victims.

Station officer at the Ashanti Regional Fire Office told Dailymailgh.comthe huge crowd at the scene delayed the rescue mission.

“We saw some persons trapped. We used our tools to rescue them. The public was disturbing us. They did not give us the space to work and that was a problem,” Station Officer II, Augustine Adogoba told Dailymailgh.com.

It is believed strong wind was a factor in bringing the sign down.

Meanwhile, the two other victims were in stable condition at the time of filing this report.

Parts of Kumasi submerged

Several homes were submerged at Aboabo, Oforikrom, Sawaba and other areas after a down pour.

Pumps of filling stations were not also spared as the downpour left in its trail destruction of properties. The development resulted in power outage as major parts of the metropolis were without electricity.

Source: Daily Mail GH