2 die in well

Two young men died in a deep well at New Akrofuom in the Adansi North District of the Ashanti Region when they entered it to drain the water therein on Thursday morning.

The deceased were identified as Kwabena Salami, 32, and Daniel, believed to be in his late twenties.


Assemblyman for the area George Yaw Boateng told DAILY GUIDE that Kwabena Salami, a borehole construction worker and resident of the community, and his water-pumping-machine-owner friend, known as Daniel, went to one Stephen Aidoo’s house to clean a 25-foot well around 9:30am.


After securing himself with a rope, Salami descended into the well with a water pumping machine hired from Daniel at the cost of GH¢20.


“After a few minutes, his friend Daniel, who had no experience with regard to that line of work, went down the well to familiarize himself with the operation, after persistent insistence,” the Assemblyman narrated.


According to Mr Boateng, Daniel became frightened upon reaching where the water was and therefore decided to come back to the surface, but fell back into the well.

He narrated further that the neighbours heard Daniel and Kwabena Salami shouting for help, and “when they looked inside, they found that the two had fallen into the water and were gasping for breath after inhaling smoke from the machine.”


Though residents tried to pull them up, the victims were unable to hold on to the rope and subsequently drowned before fire and rescue personnel could arrive, the Assemblyman stated.


Mr. Boateng said their bodies were later removed by a galamsey operator and sent to the New Edubiase Government Hospital for post-mortem.


He explained that the fire personnel told them they could not enter the well polluted by the smoke of the machine because their oxygen could only sustain an officer for one hour.


In his view, the time wasted in an effort to rescue the two victims contributed to their untimely deaths, asserting that in his opinion, Ghanaians were not safe in the face of a crisis of that nature, as emergency workers were not properly equipped.

Stephen Aidoo’s well, until the accident, was one of the sources of drinking water for the people of New Akrofuom community which has only two pipe-borne water sources.


According to the retired teacher, he contracted Kwabena Salami to clean up the well after he discovered a dead goat in the water some six weeks ago.


Mr. Aidoo narrated that the borehole construction worker managed to remove the dead goat and was in the process of draining out the water with a pumping machine when the tragedy struck while he had gone to withdraw money to pay him.


DSP Daniel Anane Amoah, the Fomena District Police Commander, confirmed the tragic incident and added that investigations into the matter had commenced.