Bolgatanga, Sept 9, GNA – Four people have been confirmed dead so far in the Upper East Region following torrential rainfall coupled with the spillage of the Bagre and Kompienga Dams in Burkina Faso.
According to the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), two teenage boys from the Binduri District and a woman from the Talensi district lost their lives when their residential rooms collapsed on them, while a man from the Builsa North District drowned in a tributary of the Sisili River.
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Jerry Asamani, the Regional Director of NADMO disclosed that about 50 people had been displaced at Anateem, a community in the Bolgatanga Municipality and were currently being sheltered at a nearby basic school.
He said as a result of the rains and the spillage of the dams from Burkina Faso, almost all the tributaries of the White Volta have overflown their banks causing so much havoc all over the region.
He said many farms have been destroyed, roads washed off and some houses are collapsing due to the continuous rainfall.
The Kobore Bridge in the Bawku West District which sits on the White Volta and links the Bawku area to Bolgatanga and beyond is still completely submerged, he said.
When the Ghana News Agency visited the area, it observed that due to strong current of the water, a deep gorge had been created on the road near the Kobore Bridge thereby cutting off five districts from the Bawku West District and the regional capital, Bolgatanga.
The affected districts included the Bawku Municipal, Tempane, Garu, Binduri and Pusiga.
Mr Asamani said if the rains continue and the gorge enlarges, it would endanger the Kobore Bridge, adding “at the moment people cannot cross to either side.”
Mr Asamani said farmers along the tributaries of the White Volta especially in the Bawku enclave have had their farms completely submerged.
“As for the farmlands you visibly see them but that is not enough, until the water recedes, we cannot assess the extent of damage. There are also houses that are collapsing, we are still counting almost every district there are reported issues of house collapse,” he said.
The Regional Director disclosed that Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia would be visiting the region later on Wednesday and would be airlifted to have an overview of the situation.
Mr Asamani further noted that the Vice President would be making donation of relief items to the displaced victims at Anateem.
GNA