SOME SURVIVING victims of the June 3 fire and flood disaster, which claimed over 150 lives and injured more than 100 others, have registered their displeasure over the neglect of government to seek justice following the tragic incident.
According to them, for the past decade, no proper legal action has been taken against GOIL, the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) in holding them accountable for their alleged roles in the incident.
Speaking to Citi News during the 10th-anniversary commemoration at the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange GOIL fuel station on Tuesday, June 3, where the disaster occurred, Leader of the Movement, Senyo Hosi, expressed disappointment over the lack of accountability, and urged the state to deliver justice.
Chairman of the Flood and Fire Victims Association, Thomas Sekyi, lamented the continued neglect of survivors and the indifference often displayed by some public institutions.
He mentioned how survivors have been met with bureaucratic silence when engaging the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly (KoKMA), adding that the worst-case scenario was the absence of a coordinated national support system to reintegrate victims into society.
On the legal front, counsel for the victims, Sampson Lardi, who filed a class-action suit in 2018, remains optimistic about a favourable court ruling.
“They are in court, 69 of them seeking help for themselves and over 100 others. They are seeking about GH¢42 million. With inflation, the value isn’t the same today. Even if they are granted the amount, the government can still intervene meaningfully to provide solace,” he stated.
Meanwhile, some victims, while recounting the tragic events, appealed for the government’s support beyond the court process.
“It was a sad day for me. I lost my wife and our child. It’s only by God’s grace that I’m still alive. The government should take care of the injured and victims,” one survivor shared.
Another survivor stated, “I had come to buy fuel and was met with this unfortunate incident. My whole body was burned. The government paid our hospital bills, but since then, there’s been no support. We plead with the government to come to our aid.”
Background
On June 3, 2015, exactly 10 years and a day ago, Accra experienced a devastating flood and fire disaster. The disaster was caused by heavy rainfall and flooding, which led to an explosion at the GOIL filling station near Kwame Nkrumah Circle. The explosion triggered a massive fire, engulfing the area and resulting in widespread destruction.
The tragedy on that fateful Wednesday night claimed over 150 lives, injured several others, and caused damage to properties worth hundreds of thousands of Ghana Cedis, sending the entire nation into a state of shock.
Over the years, legal teams representing some survivors of the flood and fire disaster have threatened court actions, demanding that both the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) compensate them.
Meanwhile, the One Ghana Movement has renewed its call for justice for victims of the June 3 fire and flood disaster, as the nation marks ten years of the tragedy.
BY Prince Fiifi Yorke