Hot!
Upper West: GNFS worried about the spate of fire incidents
The Ghana National Fire Service in the Upper West Region is worried about the spate of fire incidents at senior high schools (SHS) across the region and has asked that school authorities take fire safety precautions more seriously.
The Public Relations Officer of the GNFS in the region, Divisional Fire Officer III (DOIII), Martin Bakobie Wa who expressed the concern in an interview, mentioned that six separate fire incidents at three senior high schools within one month called for immediate attention to fire safety in the schools.
The first three incidents he said occurred at the Wa Senior High Technical School (SHTS) in a space of 72 hours, destroying about six rooms on the girls’ dormitory block.
“When the first incident occurred at the school we were still trying to figure out the cause, then the second occurred, then the third, within 48 hours so that some affected students were made to go home”, he said.
DOIII Bakobie said the last incident occurred at the Ullo Senior High School at Jirapa where over 5,000 exercise and textbooks, among other stationery burnt to ashes when the store room and dining hall of the school caught fire.
He mentioned that other items which included food commodities such as maize, vegetables and sugar meant for the students got burnt in the fire, leaving the school children very distraught.
“This fire incident comes a week after a previous incident at the Eremon Senior High Technical School (SHTS) in the Lawra Municipality where six classrooms and a twin-dormitory block were razed down”, he said.
The PRO noted with concern that 170 students at the Eremon SHTS were displaced whereas 154 of the displaced students lost virtually everything to the fire.
He mentioned that student bunk metal beds, student mattresses, chop boxes containing groceries, uniforms, trunks and other personal effects were all lost in the flames, leaving the students very devastated.
“We had to dispatch two fire pumps; one from the Jirapa fire station and the other from Lawra to help bring the fire under control after nearly two hours of trying to quench the flames”, he said.
He mentioned that they were investigating the various fire incidents but appealed to the authorities of senior high schools across the region to take precautionary measures to forestall accidental fires.
He encouraged them to allow for regular fire education, acquire fire extinguishers and also repair and replace faulty electrical wires, switches, and lamp holders, among others to help reduce the incidents.
FROM LYDIA DARLINGTON FORDJOUR, WA
Four tricycle operators, popularly known as ‘Pragya’, have been prosecuted and fined GH¢600 each equivalent to 50 penalty units by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) Sanitation Court for obstructing public roads at the Agbogbloshie Market.
The offenders, who were arrested by Public Health Officers of the AMA during a routine enforcement exercise, pleaded guilty to the offence and were subsequently convicted by the court.
The four operators were among the 21 offenders recently arrested at the Agbogbloshie Market for various sanitation and public order violations, including selling on open drains, obstructing walkways, and trading at unauthorised locations.
Speaking after the court proceedings, the Head of Public Health at the AMA, Madam Florence Kuukyi, said the court was lenient with the offenders since it was their first appearance, hence the fine, and warned that subsequent offenders would face stiffer penalties, including imprisonment.
The Ghana Police Service has arrested a man believed to be behind a series of robberies and killings of taxi drivers in the Greater Accra Region.
According to a statement from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the suspect, Peter Akakpo, also known as “Dompe,” was arrested on October 13, 2025, at Kasoa-Domeabra.
Police say he is an ex-convict and is believed to have worked with another suspect, Vincent Gbetorglo, who was arrested earlier on June 30, 2025.
The arrests follow investigations into the deaths of two taxi drivers at Sakaman Blue Lagoon on May 9 and June 15, 2025. Police say the suspects contacted the victims before the attacks.
The Anti-Armed Robbery Unit of the CID led the investigation, using intelligence and surveillance to track down the suspects.
Police say efforts are being made to recover the vehicles of the murdered drivers.
The CID assured the public that investigations are still ongoing and promised to provide updates as new information emerges.
By: Jacob Aggrey
