Mini bus kills mobile money merchant at Odumase-Krobo

Correspondence from Eastern Region

A 35-year-old mobile money merchant, Millicent Koryo, stationed at ‘Odumse Junction’ a popular T-junction on the Somanya-Kpong road in the Eastern Region on Saturday, June 5, 2021, met her untimely death when a Hyundai Grace Mini Bus loaded with cassava rammed some shops by the roadside, killing her in the process.

The vehicle with registration number GT 4514 Z being driven by one Tetteh Michael, aged 24 who claims to have lost control of the vehicle as a result of a brake failure, shredded nearby wooden structures by the roadside before crossing to the opposite side of the road.

Millicent who was apparently not in her shop at the time of the incident was said to be returning from a nearby urinal when she was struck by the vehicle.

Three others who sustained various degrees of injury are currently receiving treatment at the Tema General and St. Martin’s De Porres hospital at Agomanya.

The driver, Tetteh Michael told police that he was returning from Asesewa at around 11 am on Saturday and upon reaching Salosi, a suburb of Odumase-Krobo developed a brake failure.

According to him, he managed to control the vehicle until he reached the spot where he rammed into a Daewoo Matiz taxi cab with registration number, GS 5769 20 driven by one Theophilus Tetteh, 28, before crossing to the opposite end where he ran into some shops.

Eyewitnesses who spoke with GhanaWeb however discounted the driver’s claims of brake failure as they accused him of being engaged on his phone and thus losing concentration which resulted in the accident.

The Hyundai Grace minibus reportedly knocked down the deceased Millicent Koryo and David Djabatey aged 27.

All the victims including the driver of the Hyundai Grace Mini Bus who also sustained an injury on his chest were rushed to the Atua Government and the St. Martin De Porres Hospitals for medical treatment.

The deceased passed on whilst receiving treatment at the St. Martin De Porres Hospital. Police medical forms were issued to the other victims at both hospitals for medical officers’ reports.

Two of the victims were treated and discharged at the Atua Government Hospital. One of the victims has been referred to the Tema General Hospital for further treatment.

One other is still on admission at the St. Martin De Porres Hospital.

Husband of the deceased and an eyewitness of the incident who happened to be in the shop at the time of the accident but escaped unhurt, Emmanuel Osom told GhanaWeb what he saw.

“Yesterday (Saturday) I realized that the car has failed from the top, I don’t know [but] some people were also saying he was doing call, others also said that it was a brake failure, so before I realized, he [driver] just came to this place, so he hit a car and the car summersaulted to this place,” he narrated.

Asked if they were not endangering their lives by continually running their businesses at the junction identified by eyewitnesses as an accident hotspot, Mr. Osom who said he would no longer operate his business at the same location called for the construction of speed ramps at the junction to slow down speeding vehicles.

A lotto operator at the junction, Eugene Akunnor also recalled other accidents that had occurred at the spot and partly blamed the situation on the lawlessness including unauthorized parking and loading by some drivers at the junction.

Several accidents have reportedly occurred at the junction as business owners, pedestrians and other road users continue to face risks on their lives.