The Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly on Tuesday organised a memorial service in honour of victims of the June 3, flood and fire disaster.
The service, which is the sixth edition was in commemoration of lives lost during the disaster, and to console victims who survived the tragedy.
Mr Samuel Nii Adjei Tawiah, Municipal Chief Executive, said the occasion was an opportunity for all including victims who survived to reflect on the past and develop positive attitudes.
He said it was high time Ghanaians developed positive attitudes towards handling refuse, construction of buildings, and managing disasters in general.
Mr Tawiah noted that the community was a low-lying area and experienced flooding anytime it rained and said the government since the incident happened had put in place various measures to prevent any future occurrence.
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He said “government is already in the process of dredging the Odor River and has also completed and covered some of the drains that led to it. A few places have also been selected as safe havens in case there is a similar situation later in terms of downpours.”
The MCE said since the incident happened, the government has also been working to correct the engineering problem, which had to do with the water flow into the main odorna drain.
He said contractors were also working on reconstructing the drains from Asylum down to the main Odorna drain.
“Government is also considering the reconstruction of the major drain beneath the market, before rebuilding the market.”
Mr Tawiah said, “people are still building in our waterways, our drains are still choked with plastic waste, and it seems we are yet to learn from our mistakes over the past.”
On issues of compensation for victims, Mr Tawiah said the government and other stakeholders spent so much money in taking care of the hospital bills of victims and support for families that lost relatives.
Mr Tawiah pledged the Assembly’s commitment towards ensuring that the right things were done to protect the community from such occurrences and urged authorities to ensure that people complied with all laws and rules of building in waterways and disposal of waste.
Mr Thomas Sekyi, Chairman of the June 3 Flood and Fire Victims Association, while acknowledging the government’s support in the payment of survivors’ medical bills, said that was not enough because they were still struggling to make ends meet and to cater for their families.
He said in 2015, they received some monies from the government through the Benin government, and apart from that, the government had not given them any money to help support themselves and their respective families.
“Our conditions are disheartening. Some of us still do not have sleeping places and have no jobs, and others still have medical issues that needed to be attended to so we plead with the government to come to our aid.”
Mr Sekyi pleaded with organisations, businesses, and philanthropists to support survivors of the disaster.
Later, wreaths were laid on behalf of the victims, government, and the people of Ghana as well as traditional authorities.
On June 3, 2015, about 152 Ghanaians lost their lives while others sustained various degrees of injuries, and some, displaced through a twin-disaster; an explosion at the Goil Fuel Filling Station at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle and flooding of the national capital.
A spark of a generator was said to have come in contact with fuel at the filling station with fire spreading in the floodwaters, killing hundreds and injuring many.
