The wreckage of SS Bakana on the shores of Half Assini
On August 27, 1913, a British ship with the name, SS Bakana, run aground at Half Assini in the Western Region of Ghana.
110 years after, GhanaWeb explores the little-known story of this ship and its captain, Richard Williams, whose remains was buried in the middle of a street in Half Assini.
First, let’s take a look at the story of the ship itself and the little that is known about how it became a wreckage on the coastlines of Ghana.
According to historical details from wrecksite.eu, the British passenger/cargo ship, BAKANA SS, was built in 1894 by Naval Construction & Armaments, Barrow, England for the British & African S.N.Co Ltd (Elder, Dempster).
“She was carrying a cargo of wood from the W. Coast of Africa to Liverpool. She was wrecked on August 27th, 1913, at Half Assinie, Ama Azule Iver,” it said.
Other accounts say that Captain Richard Williams’ ship was moving from Congo towards Liverpool when it run aground at Half Assini, and after a few days, he died.
Residents of the former Half Assini found his body, performed the necessary rituals and then decided to bury his body on the outskirts of the town, which is today, the main Half Assini Township.
According to broadcaster, Kafui Dey, who was in the community in 2022, the ship, whose wreckage has been gradually eating away in the sea, is over 100 years and was 102 meters long.
He added that the ship was also 12-meters wide and 6.8 meters high.
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