GHUMCO’s gas cylinder which exploded
A 13-member committee of enquiry set up to investigate the cause of a gas explosion that left over 120 people injured in Takoradi on Tuesday, May 9, 2017, has submitted its report to the Western Regional Minister, Dr Kwaku Afriyie.
The committee members attributed the cause of the explosion to the action of the driver’s mate of Lambark Gas Company Limited, which was discharging gas into the large gas cylinder of the Ghana Household Utilities Manufacturing Company (GHUMCO) Limited.
According to the committee, the driver’s mate who allegedly ran away when he detected that there was a leakage in the course of discharging the gas into the cylinder, was not trained on how to discharge the product.
“If this mate was trained to do the job, he would have known the safety precautions before the discharge and the emergency procedures to adopt when he discovered the leakage,” the committee indicated.
It indicated that Lambark Gas had employed the driver’s mate three months before the incident and that he was not trained adding, “The discharge was handed over to this untrained mate. Untrained hands were handling the discharge of the gas.
“The mate, in the course of the discharge, discovered a leakage. Immediately he left the scene for cover. There were different heat sources available at the time too. That led to the explosion.”
Presenting the report to the regional minister at a brief ceremony in Seklondi, the chairperson of the committee, Gifty Eugenia Kusi – who is the deputy regional minister – noted that a number of recommendations had been made in the report which would be given to the Energy and Trade and Industry Ministries as well as the presidency for the necessary action; but declined to give details of the recommendations.
The western regional minister pointed out that the government was not going to be held responsible for the payment of insurance and medical bills of the victims.
He recognised cash donations made by two entities – the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) and the Association of LPG – dealers after the explosion.
He explained that the money would be given to the victims as compensation and that a medical bill of the victims, totaling about GH¢138,000.00, had been submitted to GHUMCO and Lambark Gas for payment.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Sekondi