The staff on the bank of the Volta River
The National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) has organized a three-day watermanship training workshop for 25 selected staff from nine municipalities and districts in the Eastern Region.
The watermanship workshop is meant to equip some selected staff of NADMO with knowledge and skills to rescue victims in rivers and lakes.
The training is to build the capacity of NADMO staff in the region as part of efforts to build an effective and robust emergency response team.
They were taken through topics such as NADMO Mission and Vision, Disaster Risk Management and Disaster Preparedness, among others.
The nine selected municipalities and districts included New Juaben, Kwahu Afram Plains North and South, Lower Manya Krobo, Upper Manya Krobo, Asuogyaman, Fanteakwa and Kwahu East and South respectively.
The training was held at Atimpoku, a resort along the Volta Lake in the Asuogyam District where staff were taken through swimming methods as part of efforts to build an effective and robust emergency response team in the region.
The acting Eastern Regional Director of NADMO, Kwame Appiah Kodua, in his address, said drowning has become a major problem affecting most people living along the Volta River.
According to him, in the first quarter of 2018, 15 persons got drowned in the Afram Plains North and South Districts.
Mr Appiah Kodua urged the trainees to apply the knowledge gained when managing disasters.
The Asuogyaman District Police Commander, Superintendent Ben Aniah, said the police are ready to partner emergency response team of NADMO to help manage disasters in rivers and lakes.
The police face difficulties in getting people to assist in the retrieval of bodies from river bodies.
From Daniel Bampoe, Atimpoku