Seven injured in pontoon blast

Seven people were injured when pontoon under rehabilitation on the floating dock-yard of the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC), caught fire at about 3:30pm on Saturday.

Four of the victims suffered serious bums and have been admitted at the Volta River Authority Hospital for medical treatment. The others were treated and discharged.

The injured included two Egyptians and five Ghanaians.

Hesse Erik Schmidt, Resident Engineer of ERRIA Consult, a consultancy firm for the project who confirmed the incident in an interview with the Times, said the cause of the fire was not immediately known but it was believed to have been started by an explosion caused by sparks from I 0 of the 24 pontoons, undergoing rehabilitation by workers of Arab Contractors – Ghana limited.

The company is currently undertaking the building of two additional ferries and the rehabilitation of the floating dock-yard of the VLTC under the Millennium Development Authority.

Mr. Schmidt, who described the industrial accident as an “occupational hazard”, said the situation was under investigation to establish the real cause of the outbreak.

When contacted, Assistant Station Officer of the Ghana National Fire Service, Kwamla Kilian, said his outfit was not informed about the fire outbreak.

The Minister of Transport, Mike Hammah, who paid a visit to the victims on Sunday, expressed regret about the accident and promised government's support for them.

He, however, charged the contractors to review their safety measures and policies, and put the appropriate mechanisms in place to forestall any future occurrence.

The minister, however, feared the accident might delay the scheduled time for the completion of the project.